School of Health & Wellbeing

Researchers from the University of Glasgow and Northumbria University have been awarded £2.5m from the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) to conduct evaluations of local government public health interventions.

The team led by Professors Peter Craig (University of Glasgow) and Peter van der Graaf (Northumbria University) join academic teams around the UK that make up the NIHR PHIRST (Public Health Intervention Responsive Studies Teams). Each team will complete 10 evaluations over the next 5 years. 

Organisations such as local councils apply to the PHIRST scheme for academic support to evaluate a specific public health service or scheme. If successful, PHIRST works with the local government partner to deliver a robust evaluation of the intervention over a 12 to 18 month period. Each PHIRST evaluation is co-produced with the local partner, associated stakeholders and members of the public to make sure the research provides answers to locally important questions. Organisations are then able to use the findings and recommendations to inform evidence-based practice and policy decisions about each intervention. 

Known as PHIRST Fusion, the cross university collaboration was first commissioned in 2020 and has now been renewed for a further 5 years.

Professor Peter Craig said: "I’m delighted to be working again with colleagues from the Universities of Edinburgh, Newcastle, Sheffield, Northumbria and Queens University Belfast, and with our new partners at Glasgow Caledonian University. We believe our approach and way of working with local authority partners has proved its worth over the last five years and with the new funding we’ve been able to strengthen our team by adding health economic expertise. We’re all looking forward to tackling new evaluation challenges."

PHIRST Fusion's next evaluation involves working with Knowsley Council on an evaluation of the Healthy Schools Programme.

To date the PHIRST scheme has completed over 40 evaluations on a diverse range of public health interventions, including: 

  • services to help people into employment in Scotland
  • strategies to widen participation in local exercise schemes
  • using community champions to share accurate public health messages
  • advertising restrictions on High Fat Salt and Sugar Foods in Wales

Details of all evaluations conducted by NIHR PHIRST are available on the NIHR PHIRST website.

First published: 28 January 2026

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