Healthcare Scientists included within Statement of ambition and intent from participants of the Academy of Medical Sciences’ Clinical Academic Summit.

In July 2025,  the Clinical Academic Summit took place, bringing together experts from across the UK to share national and regional examples of new models for creating clinical academic posts. and to consider how to do this more effectively. Following the Summit, a statement of ambition and intent was published from participants of the Academy of Medical Sciences’ Summit, in which Healthcare Scientists have been included.

Please see the statement below:

As participants of the Summit, we agree that urgent action is needed to address falling numbers of clinical academics and increase the number of permanent clinical academic posts, year on year, to meet the needs of the nation’s health and economy. We recognise this is a shared, UK-wide endeavour and requires a co-design of schemes, as well as funding. We will tap into the research excellence that exists across the UK, through using a shared narrative and involving patients and the public.

We, the participants, agree that:

• Clinical academics support health, economic growth and opportunity. Clinical academics lead ground-breaking discoveries and innovations that save lives and improve health and wellbeing nationally, and they play a key role in driving the UK’s economic growth and prosperity.

• If we act now, the decline of clinical academic numbers can be reversed. To do this, we need to work collectively at a local, regional and national and UK level with academia, industry, the NHS and funders.

• Investment in new clinical academic posts is happening. Despite the financial challenges facing health research organisations, we can evidence many recent examples where partnerships have been successful, creative and maximised the potential for investment.

• This is the beginning of a journey. This is a critical first step in reversing the decline in clinical academic numbers to support the ambition and opportunities in the UK Government’s Life Sciences Sector Plan.

We will take urgent action, which includes:

1. Demonstrating the value of the clinical academic workforce and advocating for new posts. We will work with patients and the public to demonstrate the value of clinical academics in improving health and healthcare with the aim of retaining this important workforce. We will raise awareness of the opportunities and benefits of clinical research, which include developing collaborations and skills, attracting and developing talent, supporting interdisciplinary research and leveraging investment.
2. Prioritising funding for new clinical academic posts of strategic importance to the local clinical academic partnership and the wider research community, with universities and NHS trusts using local strategies to prioritise funding bids.
3. Adopting a bold, mission-mindset within our organisations. Senior leaders will champion clinical research and innovation as a multidisciplinary imperative – making it clear across professional, academic and community boundaries that research and innovation are not optional add-ons, but central to how we deliver care, train our workforce, and shape future health and care systems.
4. Continuing to develop and showcase local investment and partnership opportunities in support of clinical academics, working across academia, industry, funders (including charities) and the NHS. We will share these examples to inspire further collaborations.
5. Addressing specific challenges faced by underrepresented groups in clinical academia, including nurses, midwives, registered health and social care professionals (allied health professionals, healthcare scientists, pharmacists, psychologists and social workers), ethnic minorities and women in clinical academia.

Source: Creating new clinical academic posts to support the UK’s health and economic growth | The Academy of Medical Sciences