Non-Commercial Clinical Trial Set-Up Performance Data
The UK is committed to improving the environment for all clinical research, helping to ensure that patients can benefit from high-quality studies and that researchers can deliver research efficiently across the health and care system.
The data presented in the tables below show trends in non-commercial clinical trial activity and performance. They provide evidence of progress across the wider clinical research ecosystem and demonstrate that improvements to clinical research delivery are benefiting both commercial and non-commercial studies.
These tables are derived from published UK Clinical Research Delivery (UKCRD) Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) data and have been presented separately to support transparency and understanding of performance in the non-commercial research sector. The data compare performance reported for the first half of 2025/2026 (H1) against the full year 2024/2025. The underlying source data are available through the UKCRD KPI publications.
Data tables
Table 1: Non-commercial and commercial contract studies opening to recruitment from Health Research Authority (HRA) approval letter or equivalent process used by the devolved governments (based on UKCRD KPI indicator 3)
| Study type | % studies opening within 60 days of regulatory approval (change in percentage points) | Mean time taken (days) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024/25 | 2025/26H1 | 2024/25 | 2025/26H1 | |
| Non-commercial | 41% | 50% (+9pp) | 105 | 79 (-26) |
| Commercial contract | 29% | 37% (+8pp) | 112 | 88 (-24) |
Table 2: Non-commercial and commercial contract studies recruiting first participant from opening to recruitment (based on UKCRD KPI indicator 4)
| Study type | % studies recruiting first participant within 30 days of study opening (change in percentage points) | Mean time taken (days) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024/25 | 2025/26H1 | 2024/25 | 2025/26H1 | |
| Non-commercial | 49% | 59% (+10pp) | 65 | 37 (-28) |
| Commercial contract | 52% | 51% (-1pp) | 49 | 36 (-13) |
What the data show
The tables provide information on key measures relating to non-commercial clinical trials in the UK, including activity levels and study set-up performance.
Source
These figures are derived from the published UK Clinical Research Delivery (UKCRD) Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), specifically the accompanying data tables that support the KPI reports. The figures may be updated periodically as source data are refreshed.