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Apply to UCL's Research Ethics Committees

Understand the steps you need to take when submitting high and low-risk applications to the UCL Research Ethics Service

Application routes


You can submit research ethics applications for review through UCL's high- and low-risk routes:

High-risk applications

From 21 October 2024, all high-risk research ethics applications should be submitted via the ethics@ucl system. If you are submitting a high-risk application for the Wednesday 23 October 2024 deadline, you should register your application in our online database and complete the Word application form. All applications for the Wednesday 27 November 2024 deadline need to be submitted via ethics@ucl. Institute of Education (IOE) applicants should contact the IOE Research Ethics Office at ioe.researchethics@ucl.ac.uk in the first instance 

Low-risk applications

Low-risk research ethics applications submitted centrally to the RIS Research Ethics team need to be sent via the ethics@ucl system. The team will continue to accept low-risk applications from undergraduate and postgraduate taught students via the Word application form until Friday 29 November 2024. Applicants based in faculties or departments with Local Research Ethics Committees (LRECs), should submit their application as follows: 

  • LRECs moving to the ethics@ucl system in Phase 1 should indicate which route applicants should use. Phase 1 LRECs are the Institute of Risk and Disaster Reduction; School of Sustainable Construction; Psychology and Language Sciences; Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering; and School of Management
  • Applications via all other LRECs should continue using existing local review processes

Applications submitted by email

Applications submitted before the roll-out of ethics@ucl will continue to be processed outside of the system. As per your approval letter, existing approvals should continue to submit amendments and details of adverse events to ethics@ucl.ac.uk or your local committee. Visit our responsibilities after approval page for more information.

Application process


The steps below detail how to submit high- and low-risk applications to the RIS Research Ethics team. If your department or faculty has established an LREC to review low-risk applications, check local arrangements before starting an application.  

If you cannot submit your application through ethics@ucl, contact us at ethics@ucl.ac.uk

1. Is your project classed as high- or low-risk?

High-risk projects

Applications involving the following will be deemed high-risk:

  • Vulnerable participants
  • Sensitivity
  • Consent, deception, or covert research
  • Disclosures
  • Security sensitive materials
  • Risk to researcher wellbeing
  • Administration of substances
  • Invasive procedures

Read our high-risk checklist for more information about these risk categories and examples.

If your project is high-risk, you will need to complete and submit your application in the ethics@ucl system. Your application will be sent to a REC meeting for review. The application deadline and meeting dates can be found below.

Low-risk projects

Applications for research projects not involving any of the above high-risk elements can be reviewed as 'low-risk'. Low-risk applications submitted to the RIS Research Ethics team will be reviewed on a rolling basis and there are no fixed submission deadlines. 

Several departments and faculties have established LRECs to review and approve low-risk applications. You should check the arrangements for review within your area before submitting an ethics application.

2. Register with the UCL Data Protection Office (if required)

Research involving the processing of personal data (i.e., information that relates to a directly or indirectly identifiable individual) will need to be registered with the UCL Data Protection Office (DPO) before it is submitted for review. If the DPO advises you to amend your data collection and storage arrangements, this should be updated in your ethics application.
 
UCL staff and students can register their research with the DPO using the online registration form on the DPO website. If you are unable to access or use this form, email data-protection@ucl.ac.uk. After reviewing your application, the DPO will issue a data protection registration number that you should include in your ethics application.
 
Remember to quote your data protection registration number in the appropriate section of your ethics application form as evidence that the project has been registered with the DPO. The data protection registration number is different to your ethics application number.
 
If the Data Protection registration process is taking longer than the advertised 10 days, please submit your ethics application form, marking the sections relating to data protection registration as ‘to follow’ or ‘registration in progress’. Once available, please supply the Research Ethics Service with your data protection registration number alongside any changes the DPO advised you to make to data collection and storage arrangements.
 
Data collection cannot commence until you have ethical approval and your research is registered with the UCL DPO (if required).

3. Carry out a risk assessment

To determine any risks associated with your research, i.e., risks to yourself as the researcher and those you are researching, you will need to carry out a risk assessment.

It is a legal requirement that all research is assessed for risk. Refer to your department's local arrangements for risk assessments and UCL Safety Services guidance on how to carry out a risk assessment. The guidance includes how to record a risk assessment and who should approve it.

For further advice contact the UCL Safety Services team at safety@ucl.ac.uk.

4. Accessing ethics@ucl

To access the applicant portal, visit ethics.ucl.ac.uk and log in using your UCL Single Sign-on details. A Desktop@UCL or VPN connection is not required. Supervisors should access the system to view and sign student forms.

If you are a new user, we recommend visiting our Using ethics@ucl page before using the system.

Should you have any questions about ethics@ucl not covered by the guidance above, e-mail ethics@ucl.ac.uk or join one of our drop-in sessions

5. Complete the application form 

The dynamic application form consists of tailored questions based on your responses. The full form will only be visible once sections A and B have been completed and follow-up questions will appear as you progress through the form. When completing the form, please be aware that responses may be lost if you change an answer to an initial question. 

Here are some tips to help you navigate the form and submission process: 

  • Select 'Introduction and Instructions’ to start your application
  • Select the information icons on the right-hand side of each question for guidance, tips, and links to useful resources 
  • Most questions are mandatory and need to be completed before you can submit the form. Optional questions will be highlighted 
  • Access templates and frequently asked questions under the 'Help' tab in the top navigation menu
  • To return to the overview screen, click ‘Navigate’ in the left-hand-side menu
  • Share the application with your collaborator(s) or supervisor by selecting ‘Share’ in the left-hand-side menu. Enter their UCL email address and grant full access to the application
  • Share the form with external collaborators by selecting ‘View as PDF’ in the left-hand-side menu menu and saving the form as a PDF document. Only questions that you have already answered will be included
  • You can save the application and return to it at any time. Your progress will be automatically saved when you select the 'Next page' button 
  • Once you have submitted your application, you will not be able to make further changes unless requested by a reviewer or supervisor. 
6. Attach supporting documents

To enable review, your application needs to include a full description of planned activities, your recruitment approach and consideration of potential ethical issues, and supporting documentation (such as participant information sheets, consent forms, interview questions, and survey tools). Incomplete applications will be returned with a request to revise and re-submit. 

Recruitment documents for participants

All studies involving the recruitment of participants will use documents such as information sheets and consent forms. For guidance, visit our Producing participant recruitment documents page and read the ‘annotated’ template example forms below: 

 (Word)

 (Word)
7. Related processes

Formal sponsorship review for clinical trials conducted in developing countries

Interventional studies in developing countries, i.e., drug, device, or surgery trials, need to be registered in UCL's Interventional Clinical Trials Portal. You need to complete an Entry Questionnaire (EQ) and email this to ucl.trials.portal@ucl.ac.uk, copying in ethics@ucl.ac.uk.

Once received, the UCL Institute of Clinical Trials and Methodology (ICTM) Portal Review Group will discuss your EQ and send information next steps. Questions regarding the portal should be sent to ucl.trials.portal@ucl.ac.uk.

Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks

Research conducted in England and Wales requires a criminal record check if it includes working in 'Regulated' activity with vulnerable groups as defined by the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 or in a position of trust as defined by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act Exception Order 1975. Further information and advice are available on the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) applications page on the UCL Students website.

Researchers need to take action promptly as it can take a month or more to arrange and complete the check. Clearance is required before entering a position of trust. Please quote your DBS Disclosure Number in section A2 of the application form.

Current students or those who have applied for a place on a programme at UCL that needs DBS clearance should visit the UCL Student Centre to have their DBS form checked and authorised. Students should email studentrecords@ucl.ac.uk for information about this in the first instance.

Staff who need a DBS check as part of their work (e.g., for a research project) should contact the Employment Contracts Administration of Human Resources at HR.ECA@ucl.ac.uk to request a form to complete to decide what level of certification is required. Once a decision has been made, you will need to visit HR in person to collect the DBS form.

As per the UCL DBS Checks and Criminal Convictions Policy, "UCL will accept portability of DBS checks, which individuals may have from previous employers, as proof of satisfactory clearance" under certain conditions. See Section 3.15 of the Policy for details on these conditions. 

DBS checks are not applicable for research conducted outside England and Wales (e.g., overseas or in Scotland/Northern Ireland). Students conducting research outside of England and Wales should investigate obtaining a police check for the relevant country.

The GOV.UK website provides information on how to obtain different police checks. Whilst it is not always possible in some countries, it is best practice for students to make every effort to obtain them. Further information about Scottish police checks is available on mygov.scot and Northern Irish police checks on nidirect.gov.

For advice on whether you require a DBS, student researchers should email srs-compliance@ucl.ac.uk. Staff researchers should email hr-services@ucl.ac.uk.  

Insurance

UCL studies are insured through a commercial insurer. For most studies the cover is automatic, however, staff or students undertaking the following types of studies will need to complete an insurance form:

  • Intervention studies which enrol over 5,000 subjects
  • All clinical intervention studies which enrol children aged 5 years and under where the aim is prophylaxis 
  • All clinical intervention studies where an inclusion criterion is pregnancy
  • All intervention or clinical research studies conducted in the USA and Canada.

Visit the UCLH/UCL Joint Research Office website for further information.

Travel insurance arrangements for students conducting research overseas

Students conducting overseas research need to complete an application form and be issued an insurance cover note. Information and guidance on Travel on UCL business can be found on the UCL Finance website.

8.  Declarations, signatures and submission

At the end of the application, a completeness check will appear highlighting any unanswered mandatory questions. These questions will need to be completed before the form can be signed and submitted.   

Applicants will need to complete a declaration confirming they have read and understood the requirements before submitting the form. Additionally, a signature will be required before submission. This will vary depending on the type of application and the associated risks: 

High-risk applications

Signature requirements for high-risk research ethics applications
Application typeApplication signatureSupervisor signatureDepartment signature*
Undergraduate YesYes
Masters YesYes
PhD YesYes
StaffYes Yes

Low-risk applications

Signature requirements for low-risk research ethics applications
Application typeApplication signatureSupervisor signatureDepartment signature*
UndergraduateYesYes 
MastersYesYes 
PhDYesYes 
StaffYes  
* Ethics Committee, Ethics Lead, or Head of Department
There is guidance embedded in the ethics@ucl form on how to do this. You will receive an email confirming the signature(s) and submission for review. Your application will automatically be submitted once all required signatures have been added to the form.
Following submission, you will be unable to make further changes to your application unless requested by a reviewer or supervisor.  You can check the status of your form by going to the 'Work Area' and selecting the project from the 'Projects' section. The form status table will display the current activity and status of the form. 
9. Review feedback

Once your application has been reviewed, you will receive an email with reviewer feedback and details about the next steps. Your application will be unlocked, allowing you to make edits based on the feedback, and to re-sign and resubmit your form.

Visit our Guidance, training and resources pages for guidance on responding to reviewer comments. materials for guidance on how to respond to review comments.

10. Responsibilities after approval

The Principal Investigator is expected to report any proposed changes or adverse events, and if required, report on progress at least annually. Visit our responsibilities after approval page for more information.

Application deadlines and meeting dates


There are no research ethics committee meetings in December or August. Please keep this in mind when planning your research. New high-risk applications received after the November and July meeting deadlines will not be reviewed until January and September respectively.

2023/24 and 2024/25 UCL LMS and HAS REC application deadlines and meeting dates

UCL REC application deadlines and meeting dates
High-risk application submission deadlineHAS REC meeting dateLMS REC meeting date
Wednesday 18 September 2024Monday 21 October 2024Thursday 24 October 2024
Wednesday 23 October 2024Monday 25 November 2024Thursday 28 November 2024
Wednesday 27 November 2024Monday 13 January 2025Thursday 16 January 2025
Wednesday 08 January 2025Monday 10 February 2025Thursday 13 February 2025
Wednesday 12 February 2025Monday 17 March 2025Thursday 20 March 2025
Wednesday 12 March 2025Monday 28 April 2025Thursday 01 May 2025
Wednesday 30 April 2025Monday 02 June 2025Thursday 05 June 2025
Wednesday 28 May 2025Monday 30 June 2025Thursday 03 July 2025
Wednesday 25 June 2025Monday 28 July 2025Thursday 31 July 2025