The Medical Research Council (MRC) and the Chief Scientist Office (CSO) of the Scottish Government Health Directorates have awarded £19 million to the Social & Public Health Sciences Unit (SPHSU) based at the university, it has been announced today.

The Unit has been supported by the two organisations for 10 years and will now continue as an internationally recognised centre of excellence for studies into social and environmental influences on health. The MRC has contributed £15.5 million to the latest award, while the CSO are to add a further £3.5 million over five years.

Research undertaken at the SPHSU plays an important role in providing information to policy makers in Scotland, the rest of the UK and overseas. Previous work has enabled politicians and civil servants to understand how inequalities in health arise and how they can be best combated. The unit's research has also furthered the public's perception and response to public health issues such as vaccination, human genetics and obesity. Its staff collaborate extensively with other researchers working in the UK and beyond, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa.

Professor Sally Macintyre, Director of  SPHSU, welcomed the funding saying: "It is really important that social and public health policies, which often affect many people and cost a lot of money, are based on the best possible evidence. Renewed funding will help us provide that evidence."

Sir Leszek Borysiewicz, Chief Executive of the MRC, added: "Over the past 10 years, the Unit has very successfully integrated the formerly separate MRC and CSO activities into a single, integrated programme that continues to be an outstanding and unique centre of excellence in social and public health sciences. Through multidisciplinary working, the Unit has made significant impact on our understanding on the social influences on health and the translation of these findings into UK policy and practice."

Current research projects focus on major health problems that exist in developed and developing countries, including cancer, heart disease and stroke, obesity and diabetes, sexual health and mental illness.

Sir John Savill, Chief Scientist at the Scottish Government Health Directorates, continued: "We are delighted to be working in partnership with the MRC to support a Scottish research Unit with such a distinguished scientific record, and so much to contribute to public health policy."

Scotland's Public Health Minister Shona Robison said:  "It's well-known that there are links between our health and wellbeing and our social circumstances and this is something we're already working very hard to tackle through Equally Well, our programme to tackle health inequalities in Scotland. The more we know about how one affects the other, the more we can do to change it.

"Some Scottish communities have relatively low life expectancy but in others people can expect to live much longer. Work from the Social and Public Health Sciences Unit is helping to explain these differences, how they are related to education, income, employment, and early childhood, and what we can do to reduce them."

Sir Muir Russell, University Principal, added that the university was proud of the work undertaken by the SPHSU's staff. "The City and University of Glasgow have a long history of research into social and environmental determinants of health, such as housing and neighbourhood conditions. We are proud of the work that the Social and Public Health Sciences Unit is doing to build on this history, and delighted it has won such substantial renewed funding.  This provides a tremendous opportunity to further enhance our work in partnership across the City to improve health and reduce health inequalities," he said.

Notes to editors

For further information on the Medical Research Council please contact Kerry Teakle, Interim Regional Communications Manager (Scotland) at the MRC on Telephone: 0131 332 2471, xtn 2102 or email kerry.teakle@hgu.mrc.ac.uk.

The Medical Research Council supports the best scientific research to improve human health. Its work ranges from molecular level science to public health medicine and has led to pioneering discoveries in our understanding of the human body and the diseases which affect us all.

The Chief Scientist Office of the Scottish Government Health Directorates funds research to improve health and to benefit patients in Scotland. www.sehd.scot.nhs.uk/cso/

For more information at the University of Glasgow, please contact Eleanor Cowie, Media Relations Officer, on Telephone 0141 330 3683 or Email e.cowie@admin.gla.ac.uk

First published: 23 September 2009

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