Integrated Workforce Framework

Welcome to the Integrated Workforce Framework NIHR Hub site. The site has been designed to support your understanding of the Integrated Workforce Framework © and to help you to start using it.

Recent updates

A number of improvement themes came out of our engagement and evaluation. As a result we committed to:

Respond to the demand for a digital IWF tool. This development work is being scoped currently.
Provide clearer guidance on creating role profiles to address: subjective, the need for all elements to be included (minimum %), dividing 100% focus.
Address the overlap of Clinical Context and Clinical Research elements. The framework table has been restructured from 9 to 12 elements still within the three domains of Clinical Research, Clinical Context and Leadership. The revision specifically affects the Elements for (a) Ethics, Patient Safety and Clinical Governance and (b) Communication and Relationships. Read the rationale for this restructure in the IWF Evaluation Summary.

You can find both previous and revised IWF resources on the resource page.

Framework v2.1.pdf

Revised IWF table (version 2.1)

What is the Integrated Workforce Framework (IWF)?

The NIHR CRN Integrated Workforce Framework is a national resource which provides a consistent and accessible way of describing the research workforce and what they do. It supports informed and productive conversations about this workforce using a common language.

The IWF aims to be comprehensive in its coverage as an overarching framework, which provides a shared language and methodology of describing roles.

The IWF can:

be used to describe any research role as part of the job that person is employed to do
be accessed for use by anyone without any formal training.
be integrated with locally used competence frameworks, i.e. uni-professional or organisational
interface with local/national initiatives in the context of the employing organisation
inform conversations about skill-mix across teams and services work alongside a scope of practice
support the areas that it does not directly provide for (listed below) by supplying a structure and common language to inform solution focused conversations

The IWF is not:

a competence framework
a source of detailed performance criteria or measures of assessment for these
a grading tool and is independent of AfC banding

How was the Integrated Workforce Framework developed?

The IWF was developed by the NIHR CRN as part of a national project. The work was initiated and managed as part of the Integrated Workforce Framework Project.

The project involved input from a selection of stakeholders and it was endorsed by a project board including support from the Department of Health. Involvement of NHS Workforce Specialists has ensured that the resource resonated with the rest of the NHS. In advance of developing the IWF the working group established a list of principles which it needed to uphold.

Work to develop the IWF began by building on existing resources that were tried, tested and trusted but were stretched to accommodate change in the research landscape. The content of the NIHR CRN IWF therefore is not novel but rather builds on resources currently in use, for example the RCN Competency Framework for Clinical Research Nurses (2011) , and is strongly influenced by https://coapcr.org/

Making the IWF tool and site accessible

This accessibility statement applies to https://sites.google.com/nihr.ac.uk/integrated-workforce-framework/iwf-resources. This website is run by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, you should be able to:

change colours, contrast levels, and fonts
zoom in up to 500% without text spilling off the screen and most images scaling without resolution loss
navigate most of the website using just a keyboard
listen to most of the website using a screen reader
read most of the website on devices without a screen, like a braille computer
use the website, though not the search, even if Javascript is switched off

We've made the website text as simple as possible to understand. AbilityNet has advice on making your device easier to use if you have a disability.

The website content has been built to be rendered on mobile devices. If you’d like to help us make the site more accessible, we’d like to hear from you.

Feedback and contact information

If you need information on this website in a different format like accessible PDF, large print, easy read, audio recording or braille:

iwf-queries@nihr.ac.uk
We’ll consider your request and get back to you in 5 working days.

Reporting accessibility problems with this website

We’re always looking to improve the accessibility of this website. If you find any problems that aren’t listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, contact us at iwf-queries@nihr.ac.uk

Enforcement procedure

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the ‘accessibility regulations’). If you’re not happy with how we respond to your complaint, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS).

Technical information about this website's accessibility

The NIHR is committed to making websites accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018.

Compliance status

This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 AA standard.