The Northern Care Alliance Research Collection (NCARC) is a generic research tissue bank with delegated ethical permission to authorise research using collected tissue and NHS data.
Use of a standardised NCARC consent form and Donor Information Sheet allows:
- Access to any surplus clinical tissue collected in the past or at any time in the future
- Access to minimally invasive extra samples (e. blood) with permission
- Access to all retrospective and future clinical data
- Potential inclusion of donors with impaired capacity
- Potential to collect for ‘fresh tissue’ research
Led from within R&I to:
- Provide oversight and consistency
- Offer a support framework, including monitoring/compliance
- Offer potential access to HTA compliant biorepository facilities if needed
Creating a tissue collection
A Management Committee sitting within R&I:
- Considers written proposals for new collections
- Ensures collections will provide research opportunities and align to Trust and R&I priorities
- Ensures potential costs are clear, recoverable, and support future income generation (e.g. portfolio opportunities, grants, etc.)
- Helps ensure that collections comply with all regulatory requirements
- Authorises collections that are of significant research value and are likely to have a high throughput of samples/data
- Promotes NCARC as a mechanism for facilitating research and other opportunities
- Maintains oversight of the long term costs and strategy for NCARC
Researcher access
An Access Committee:
- Considers proposals to access samples or data from international researchers
- Critically reviews proposals to ensure they are scientifically robust and important
- Ensures samples are released wherever possible and for the best possible research
- Ensures that appropriate acknowledgement exists for collectors/bank/R&I/Trust
- Is made up of experts and lay-members including clinicians, patients, researchers, and R&I
- Considers applications via email to encourage rapid progression of high-quality research