Launching the BPAS Integrated Research and Innovation Strategy

In February, I was delighted to launch the BPAS 2025-2030 Integrated Research and Innovation Strategy. As the newly appointed Director of Research and Innovation, I was entrusted with developing a strategy that puts research at the heart of BPAS. Our aim is to embed a culture of research that informs and shapes abortion care and policy within BPAS and beyond.

This blog shares insights into how we developed our strategy and why involvement and engagement with staff, patients, and external stakeholders are central to our approach.

The foundations of research at BPAS

Research has been a part of BPAS since our founding in 1968. Over the decades, we have conducted our own studies and supported external research initiatives. In 2019, we established the Centre for Reproductive Research & Communication (CRRC) to bring together and expand our clinical, social science, and policy research, but we knew we could do more.

BPAS occupies a unique position in the abortion sector. With a large patient population, specialist expertise, access to extensive datasets, and a dedicated research and evaluation team, we have the foundations for producing research that makes a real difference. However, we recognised that strengthening our research capacity and working more closely with others would help us generate evidence that leads to meaningful change.

Building the strategy: a collaborative approach

In summer 2024, we began working with BPAS staff, patients, and external stakeholders to shape our research strategy. At the core of this work was a commitment to involvement, for one simple reason: research should benefit the people who deliver and receive our services.

Involvement means conducting research with or by people, rather than to, about, or for them. It is an active partnership between patients, carers, the public, and researchers, ensuring that research reflects the needs and experiences of those it affects. For a service-delivery organisation like BPAS, making research more patient-centred leads to better care and a more positive experience for those accessing our services. Involving staff in setting research priorities and supporting projects also ensures that those providing care see real benefits too.

We also recognised the need to engage people outside BPAS, many of whom are long-term collaborators with a deep understanding of the sector’s challenges and priorities. While one of our main goals was to strengthen research within BPAS, we also wanted to ensure our work meets the needs of the wider community including those who provide, commission, advocate for, research, and shape abortion policy.

Over the next several months, we held individual meetings and focus groups with a broad range of people, including:

• BPAS staff from across the organisation
• People with lived experience of abortion care
• Representatives from independent and NHS abortion providers
• Policymakers, commissioners, activists, and research funders
• Academics and professional membership organisations

From discussions with staff and patients, we identified several priorities. These included clearer pathways for staff to engage in research, training, and better communication on how research informs clinical care.

Our conversations with external stakeholders helped us understand what is expected of BPAS as a commissioned abortion provider, what they viewed were the characteristics of high-quality research from a service provider, and how we can best contribute to the evidence base. Stakeholders shared their views on the most pressing research and evaluation needs in the abortion sector, shaping our approach to ensure our work is relevant and has real-world impact.

One of the strongest themes across all discussions was the importance of collaboration, particularly with other providers and the NHS. By prioritising partnerships, we can strengthen research across the sector, ensuring that it benefits everyone involved in abortion care from service users to policymakers.

Our vision for the next five years

Over the next five years, we will measure our progress through four priorities that will shape our research culture, strengthen partnerships, and expand our influence:

• Building meaningful collaborations:  We will expand and deepen partnerships with researchers, healthcare providers, and policymakers to ensure our work is informed by and contributes to sector-wide learning and improvement.
• Embedding patient and staff involvement:  We will create more opportunities for patients and staff to shape research priorities, co-produce projects, and influence how research findings are used to improve care. This includes developing digital platforms and establishing a research priority-setting partnership.
• Supporting staff to engage in research:  We will provide training and clear pathways for BPAS staff to develop research skills, contribute to projects, and lead their own research initiatives, ensuring research is an integral part of our service.
• Producing research that informs practice and policy: We will generate rigorous, high-quality research that strengthens clinical care, informs policy, and supports advocacy efforts to improve abortion and reproductive healthcare.

This strategy will ensure BPAS remains responsive to the needs of patients, staff, and the wider abortion care sector. By embedding research in everything we do, we aim to enhance services within BPAS while also playing a central role in shaping abortion and reproductive health research, policy, and advocacy more broadly.