The West Midlands
Progression Plan
What is the West Midlands Progression Plan (formerly known as the Entry Plan)
The West Midlands Progression Plan is a collection of over 20 projects that have been designed to support the West Midlands to become the best possible place to live, work and receive health and social care, where research and innovation thrive. It is a collaborative piece of work involving the contributions of region wide partners. The overall project management of the plan is provided by the Clinical Research Network West Midlands (CRN WM); with a Progression Plan Programme Board (convened from the outset) on hand to offer strategic direction, advice and support for the programme as a whole and the projects that it is formed of.
At the inception of the plan, a number of themes were agreed on to provide a clear focus for it, with a selection of project ideas put forward to support the delivery of these themes. Initially there were four themes, with an increase to five to recognise the importance of commercial research. They are:
Meeting the health and care needs of participants and the population
Research ecosystem
Maximising data and digital
Innovation
Commercial research
From the conception of the plan it has been emphasised that it is important for it to be responsive and reactive to the changing research environment and landscape so all work completed within its remit remains current and relevant; Covid-19 has particularly shown us the importance of such an approach.
The purpose of this site is to provide real time access to all relevant Progression Plan information so you can be clear on the projects through which the plan is being delivered, and who is working on these. It also provides the information needed to allow those who would like to be involved in a project to put their name forward.
If you have a question or query concerning the West Midlands Progression Plan or any of the projects, please get in touch via - wm-progression-plan@nihr.ac.uk. If your question/query concerns a specific project, it will be reviewed centrally and a reply provided.
The progress so far
Stage 1
Progression Plan (formerly known as the Entry Plan) Programme Board convened and decision made on important areas for projects to focus
Stage 2
Project facilitators assigned to each project and project documentation completed (project briefs and project action plans)
Stage 3
Progression Plan Programme Board continues to meet - monthly initially and now quarterly - to steer the programme along
Stage 4
Quarterly meetings held between Progression Plan Project Management Team and project facilitators to check in on project status and progress and offer support
Stage 5
Development of a Progression Plan Google Site to host all Progression Plan information
Stage 6
Beginning to see the results / outputs of some of the projects with the majority progressing very well and some being completed
For a summary of project progress across the whole Progression Plan, please access our Project Progress Report; this was last updated in March 2024. If you require this document or the graphic above in a more accessible format, please contact us: wm-progression-plan@nihr.ac.uk.
