Dementia: Research
(asked on 1st April 2025) - View Source
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding was allocated to dementia research by (a) the National Institute for Health and Care Research, (b) UK Research and Innovation and (c) other public bodies in each of the last five years.
The Government’s responsibility for delivering dementia research is shared between the Department of Health and Social Care, with research delivered via the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, with research delivered via UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
The following table shows NIHR and UKRI spend data for dementia research across five financial years, from 2019/20 to 2023/24:
Year | NIHR | UKRI | Total |
2019/20 | £29,000,000 | £56,600,000 | £85,600,000 |
2020/21 | £21,900,000 | £63,700,000 | £85,600,000 |
2021/22 | £30,300,000 | £56,000,000 | £86,300,000 |
2022/23 | £35,100,000 | £64,800,000 | £99,900,000 |
2023/24 | £42,800,000 | £96,300,000 | £139,000,000 |
Total | £159,100,000 | £337,400,000 | £496,400,000 |
Spend for dementia research is calculated retrospectively, with a time lag due to annual reporting cycles, therefore 2023/24 is the most recent year for which we have data. The Department does not centrally hold data on dementia research funding from other public bodies.
The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health and care, including dementia. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality. All NIHR programmes welcoming applications on dementia enables maximum flexibility both in terms of the amount of research funding a particular area can be awarded, and the type of research which can be funded.