Culture, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (CEDI) Impact Award
About
The Culture, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (CEDI) Impact Award recognises and celebrates the efforts of researchers supported by the NIHR Maudsley BRC who have made significant contributions to research, which has demonstrated measurable impact in advancing CEDI principles in practice or service delivery.
This year (2025) marks the second CEDI Impact Award, which will be presented to a researcher whose research work exemplifies excellence in promoting equality, diversity, and inclusion, through research outputs, community engagement or tangible impact on policies, clinical practice or service delivery. The winner will be awarded £1,000 to go towards training or conference attendance.
Our CEDI strategy aligns with the efforts of our partner organisations to create a genuinely welcoming and inclusive research environment that reflects and celebrates the diversity of our research community – where all individuals feel recognised, valued and supported.
The NIHR Maudsley BRC promotes equity and aims to reduce discrimination and systemic barriers to research participation, training, and career progression. By fostering inclusivity, we work to create a sense of belonging and ensure that every member of our community can fully contribute their unique perspectives and talents to advancing the delivery of innovative research outputs and impacts for patient benefit. Through different initiatives, we cultivate creativity, innovation and excellence, enabling all our stakeholders to thrive and achieve their highest potential. This award recognizes the real-world impact of research, including improvements in clinical practice, service delivery or community engagement.
See the webpage Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy, 2023 - 2028 for our full strategy.
Read about the winners of the 2024 award.
Submit your entry via the online form here.
Application deadline: Monday 20 October 2025 at 12:00 noon.
Award
The award winner will be announced at the CEDI Impact Award Event on Wednesday 3 December 2025, 3 to 5pm in the IoPPN Small Lecture Theatre, IoPPN Main Building, Denmark Hill Campus, SE5 8AB.
• Award certificates (for the top 3 winners)
• First prize winner will receive £1,000 (for training or conference attendance)
• Winning entries will be announced on the BRC website and social media
Please note: Shortlisted applicants will be invited to present their research article at the Award event. The presentation will form part of the overall assessment and scoring for the award.
The Judging panel
- Professor Grainne McAlonan, NIHR Maudsley BRC Director (Chair)
- Dr Mariana Pinto da Costa, Culture, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Lead, NIHR Maudsley BRC
- Dr Juliana Onwumere, Chair, Building Race Equity and Diversity (BREaD) in Research
- Dr Franziska Denk, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Lead Pain and Addictions Theme, NIHR Maudsley BRC
- Dr Megan Earl, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Lead Child Mental Health & Neurodevelopmental Disorders Theme, NIHR Maudsley BRC
- Dr Ahmad Al Khleifat, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Lead Motor Neuron Disease Theme, NIHR Maudsley BRC
- Saskia Evans Perks, Lived Experience Ambassador, Research and Development Team, South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust
In your covering letter we suggest you address the first three sections – Inclusive Methodology, Scientific Rigour and Impact – allocating 150–200 words for each section.
Inclusive Methodology:
- Implementation of strategies to minimise biases and ensure representativeness. These could include: recruitment of diverse groups of participants; collecting data on demographic variables such as ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability; randomisation or stratification of the study population where relevant.
- Inclusion of PPIE in research, or a co-production approach, where relevant.
Scientific Rigour:
- Transparency in data collection and analysis approaches.
- In-depth description of methodology.
- Transparent and accurate reporting of results, including non-significant findings.
- Evidence of critical appraisal of the study in the discussion section.
Impact:
- Evidence of promoting and implementing EDI principles within the research design, conduct and dissemination (e.g. pointing out the underrepresentation of certain populations in research and describing how this was addressed in the study; practical suggestions for being more inclusive in future research).
- Potential for the research to serve as a model for EDI integration in future studies.
- Demonstrated real-world effect, such as influencing clinical practice, service delivery, policy or community outcomes.
- Effective dissemination of findings to key stakeholders, including patients, communities, policymakers, and public engagement activities.
Quality of Writing:
- Clear and concise summary of the main points in the abstract section.
- Effective communication of research objectives, methods, results, interpretation of results, implications for future studies, and limitations.
Presentation at the Award Event:
- Clarity and accessibility of presentation style.
- Ability to communicate research significance to a diverse audience.
- Strength of engagement with CEDI principles in the presentation.
- You must submit a peer-reviewed first-author or last-author publication (quantitative or qualitative) reporting research supported by the NIHR Maudsley BRC (with details of the BRC in the authors’ affiliations / acknowledgements).
- Applicants can be of any career stage.
- Each applicant can only apply with one publication.
Each application will be scored independently by panel members according to the evaluation criteria. Where panel members have conflicts of interest with an applicant, they will not mark that application.
After scoring, applications will be ranked by average total score, and a shortlist will be agreed by the Award Jury panel.
Shortlisted applicants must present their research article at the award event. Final scores will combine both the written submission and the presentation.
Contact:
If you would like to discuss the award or have any questions, please contact Dr Mariana Pinto da Costa, NIHR Maudsley BRC Culture, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Champion via email on mariana.pintodacosta@kcl.ac.uk.
Photo credit: Age Without Limits
