Blackwood appointed as chair of the Health Data Research Service

Baroness Nicola Blackwood has been appointed as chair of the Health Data Research Service (HDRS), backed by up to £600 million in funding from the government and Wellcome.

The Department of Health and Social Care announced the launch of the HDRS in April 2025 to bring access to data for medical research into one location, meaning that researchers do not have to navigate different systems or make multiple applications for information for the same project.

NHS England invited applications for the inaugural chair and chief executive of the service in August and Zubir Ahmed, health innovation minister, announced Blackwood’s appointment on 25 November during a speech in London.

Ahmed said: “I am delighted to announce Baroness Blackwood’s appointment, who will play an important role in helping us build an NHS fit for the future.

“By unlocking the power of NHS data safely and securely, we will accelerate lifesaving research that will deliver better treatments for patients faster.

“This is about harnessing the incredible potential of our health service’s data to drive medical breakthroughs, while maintaining gold-standard protections for patient privacy.

“Baroness Blackwood’s proven leadership in life sciences and innovation will be instrumental in making Britain the best place in the world for medical research.”

Blackwood is chair of Oxford University Innovation and Genomics England and serves on the boards of biotechnology company BioNTech and investment fund RTW Biotech Opportunities.

Her appointment comes as the HDRS moves from planning to implementation, with HDRS approved as a government company and incorporation work in progress.

The HDRS is intended to streamline how health data is obtained while upholding safeguards for data security, privacy and ethical oversight, enabling approved researchers to accelerate the discovery of treatments to improve patient care.

It links to the government’s 10 year health plan and forms part of its modern industrial strategy and life sciences sector plan, with life sciences identified as a key growth-driving sector that will create high-quality jobs and boost the economy.

Stakeholder engagement with patients, health practitioners and researchers across the UK, took place between June and October 2025 to shape the strategic ambition for HDRS.

This engagement revealed that users need data that is “research ready”, available through a single front door, with transparent and timely access.

Lord Vallance, science minister, said: “Baroness Blackwood has significant experience in life sciences and health innovation. Her leadership will be crucial as the Health Data Research Service gets underway.

“For too long, researchers and the healthcare system itself have faced unnecessary delays and difficulties accessing the health data they need to develop new treatments or help improve services for patients.

“This ground-breaking service will change this – streamlining access whilst maintaining rigorous safeguards for patient data. This means faster development of new medicines and therapies and better care for patients.”

In November 2024, an independent review of the UK’s health data by Professor Cathie Sudlow, former chief scientist of Health Data Research UK, called for barriers to accessing NHS patient data to be removed so that it can be used for medical research.