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University Hospitals Birmingham (UHB) is set to strengthen its role in dementia research following the award of a prestigious UK Dementia Trials Network (UKDTN) Clinical Trials Fellowship to consultant neurologist Dr Will Scotton.

The two-year fellowship, awarded through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR)-funded UKDTN, will support Dr Scotton to develop expertise in delivering early-phase dementia trials and lay the foundations for a dedicated programme within the NIHR Birmingham Clinical Research Facility (CRF), based at Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham (QEHB), and the wider West Midlands region.

The fellowship is part of the UKDTN’s mission of making the UK the go-to place for early-phase dementia clinical trials by expanding workforce and research capacity beyond established centres.

Over the next two years, Dr Scotton will undertake specialist training in Phase 1a and Phase 1b dementia trials, working across leading research centres and clinical research facilities, including QEHB and the University College London Hospitals (UCLH).

For Birmingham and the wider Midlands, the fellowship represents an important step towards increasing opportunities for patients to take part in dementia research and access innovative treatments within the region.

Dhruv Parekh, Medical Director of Research and Innovation at UHB and Director of the NIHR Birmingham CRF, said: “This fellowship is an important milestone in our ambition to develop UHB’s capability in early-phase dementia research.

“We have the clinical expertise, research infrastructure and access to a diverse population needed to make a real difference, and Will’s fellowship will help us develop the specialist capability required to bring these trials to the region. It is an exciting opportunity for UHB, but most importantly, it will give more patients the opportunity to take part in cutting-edge dementia research closer to home.”

Birmingham is particularly well placed to support the next generation of dementia research. As one of the UK’s largest and most diverse cities, it provides access to a broad range of communities and patient groups. This diversity will help ensure that people taking part in dementia trials better reflect those affected by the condition, helping research to be more relevant to patients across the UK.

Dr Will Scotton said: “I am immensely grateful to Professor Catherine Mummery and the UK Dementia Trials Network for the opportunity this Fellowship provides, both personally and, most importantly, for people living with these devastating diseases across the West Midlands. I am also extremely grateful to Professor Dhruv Parekh and the wider UHB and Birmingham CRF team, alongside Professor Tonny Veenith at The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust, for supporting the Fellowship and our ambition to build the capacity and capability to deliver early-phase dementia trials in the region.

“With its ethnically diverse population, clinical expertise and existing research infrastructure, the West Midlands is something of a sleeping giant in the delivery in early-phase dementia research. I am excited to begin this work and improve access to these trials for patients who currently have limited opportunities to take part locally.”

Professor Catherine Mummery, UKDTN Director, said: “Building research capacity across the UK is central to our ambition of making the UK the go-to place for early-phase dementia trials. A network is nothing without the right people and this initiative aims to develop the trials leaders of the future, building a sustainable and forward-looking network.

“Dr. Scotton's fellowship is an important step in developing specialist expertise in Birmingham and the West Midlands and creating more opportunities for people living with dementia to access innovative trials closer to home.”