Public Health  Practice Evaluation Scheme

The wider NIHR SPHR’s goal is to produce high quality evidence for public health practice to improve population health and reduce health inequalities. To achieve this, the School must address the challenges faced by public health practitioners working on the ‘front line’ – in the NHS, in local authority public health teams, in other local authority departments including social care, schools and transport and in the third sector.

To help us respond to these challenges we have set up the Public Health Practice Evaluation Scheme (PHPES).  PHPES enables people working in public health who are introducing innovative initiatives aimed at improving health, to work in partnership with SPHR to conduct rigorous evaluations of their cost-effectiveness. The scheme is particularly focused on local public health initiatives, rather than projects that are part of national programmes.

What PHPES offers
The scheme offers public health practitioners working in any sector an exciting opportunity to:

• Collaborate with leading population health scientists to evaluate your practice
• Gain national profile for your work
• Provide evidence on the cost-effectiveness of your work that others can use
• The possibility that your project or initiative will be replicated in other areas

What we’re looking for
We welcome applications from people working across the public health community, in the NHS, local authority, clinical commissioning groups, screening teams and third sector organisations.

Your project or initiative can be focused on changing the environment in which people live and work – natural, built, social, financial, regulatory and cultural, promoting healthy individual behaviour, or both. We will also consider those aimed at improving population health services.

To be eligible for support from SPHR, your project or initiative should:

• aim to improve population health and reduce health inequalities
• have the potential to be of benefit in other parts of England
• have secure funding throughout the duration of the evaluation (normally up to 2 years)

The current call for applications has now closed.