Ethics review process

To help you to consider whether your research project will require ethics review, complete the online training in research ethics in your first six months of study.  

What to consider when planning  your ethics review 

The ethics review process can take at least six weeks. You should take this into account when planning your research.  Discuss your application for ethics review with your supervisors as part of your supervision meetings.  

If your project requires ethics review, you must have ethical approval from a recognised research ethics committee before any research activity starts. 

Certain projects, such as those involving NHS patients or clinical trials, will require special ethics review processes. If this is the case for your project, your supervisors can advise on the next steps.  Bear in mind that University of Leeds oversight is required for any studies that are delivered under external ethics approval.     

If you will be undertaking research involving animals under Home Office approval from an external organisation you must notify the University of Leeds Animal Welfare and Ethical Review Body (AWERB) of the intended study prior to commencing the animal work at Leeds by emailing h.o.admin@leeds.ac.uk. 
Further information, including the application form for University review, can be found in the ethics review section of the Secretariat website. 

Ethics and your progress reviews 

Your awareness of the ethical implications of your research and ethics approval will be checked at the training plan stage, at the transfer stage, at Annual progress reviews and at examination entry. 

If ethics review is required for your research, you will be asked to upload a copy of your ethics approval as part of your progress reviews and confirm: 

• The ethics approval reference and the full name of the approving research ethics committee 
• The title of the study named in the approval confirmation 
• Name of the Chief Investigator (CI) on the approval confirmation. If this is not you then full details should be provided with confirmation that ethics approval and any/all regulatory permissions are in place to cover your activity on the study. 
• Where external ethics approval was needed, you will also be asked to upload evidence that University of Leeds  Chair’s ethical scrutiny has been obtained. 

Changes to your project 

If there are any changes to your research study this may require an amendment to a previous ethics review. You must contact the Research Ethics team in the Secretariat if this is the case. This includes any changes to the end date of your studies because of a suspension or extension.

Ethics approve and your thesis 

If your research required ethics approval, include a copy of the ethics approval from the relevant body (eg research ethics committee) in the appendix of your thesis. The examiners of your thesis may ask for access to the full ethics review paperwork considered by the Faculty Research Ethics Committee.   

Failure to seek appropriate ethics approval through the review process could have implications for the award of your research degree.