Conducting research with human participants (outside the NHS)

The Queen Mary Ethics of Research Committee

Queen Mary Ethics of Research Committee (QMERC) provides ethical scrutiny of research studies conducted by Queen Mary researchers. It ensures that research at Queen Mary is always conducted with full awareness of the ethical issues, and necessary precautions are taken to preserve the highest ethical standards.

Any research involving human participants (including personal data or human tissue) may give rise to ethical risks and researchers must take steps to manage these risks effectively. To ensure that high ethical standards are maintained, policies and procedures must be followed. Our Standard Operating Procedure sits alongside the Queen Mary Policy on Research Integrity [PDF 124KB] and Policy on Research with Human Participants [PDF 86KB].

The Committee is made up of a range of academic, research staff and student representatives from across the University representing all the Faculties; led by a lay independent Chair, supported by a Deputy Chair. Each Panel has at least one invited member from each Faculty.

List of members of the QM Ethics Committee (September 2023). [PDF 110KB]

For information about the role of the QMERC Panel, its chairs and members, please see the role description of QMERC review panel members [PDF 198KB]. If you are interested in becoming a member of the QMERC or finding out more, please contact research.ethics@qmul.ac.uk

QMERC reviews ethics applications from Queen Mary researchers who are planning to conduct research involving human participants, their data or samples using Queen Mary premises or facilities, or conducted at external sites but led by Queen Mary staff. We review applications from all disciplines, across all Queen Mary Faculties, Schools and Institutes.

A few investigative activities involving human participants would not require Queen Mary Ethics of Research Committee review and approval:

Secondary data analysis
Service evaluations
Audit work
Where there is a legal requirement for NHS REC review, see ‘Do I need NHS REC review’ on the Health Research Authority website.

For full details of the NHS REC remit and review, more can be found at Governance Arrangements for Research Ethics Committees (GAfREC) on the HRA website.

If your study requires NHS REC review, or you are unclear whether ethical approval is required, either from QMERC or another Research Ethics Committee, please contact us.