Ethical approval for non-clinical research involving human participants: University Research Ethics Committee (UREC)

Terms of reference

The University Research Ethics Committee (UREC) is responsible for upholding the ethical standards of practice in non-clinical research involving human participants in the University in order to protect participants and researchers from harm, preserve participants’ rights, and to provide reassurance to the public and funders regarding the ethical conduct of research at the University. It provides oversight, monitoring and guidance to the School Research Ethics Committees (SRECs) and acts as the first point of contact for the review and approval of proposals to access and use sensitive material for research purposes. UREC reports to the Research Governance and Policy Sub-Committee annually and at each meeting (via submitted minutes). 

UREC is responsible for:

• Development of University policies and procedures for the ethical conduct of research
• Oversight of the work of the SRECs
• Provision of guidance on research ethics issues to SRECs
• Monitoring of standards of ethical review and compliance with policies and procedures by researchers
• Ethical review and approval of cases referred to UREC where the SREC could not reach a decision, for instance due to complexity or conflicts of interest
• Hearing of appeals against decisions made by SRECs
• Reporting annually to Research Governance and Policy Sub-Committee
• Provision of support for ethics training by SRECs
• Acting as first point of contact for review and approval of proposals to access and use security-sensitive material for research purposes

Membership

• Dr Josephine Ross, UREC Convenor, School of Humanities, Social Sciences and Law
• Dr Beth Hannah, UREC Deputy Convenor, School of Humanities, Social Sciences and Law
• Dr Jan Boehnke, SREC Convenor, Schools of Health Sciences and Dentistry
• Dr Emese Nagy, SREC Convenor, School of Humanities, Social Sciences and Law
• Dee Birrell-Murray, Senior Information Governance Officer, Legal, Academic and Corporate Governance
• Dr Panagiotis Chatzistergos, SREC Convenor, School of Science and Engineering
• Dr Jacqueline Donachie, SREC Convenor, School of Art and Design
• Andrew Jack, Lay Member
• Dr Martin Jones, SREC Convenor, School of Business
• Dr Sharon King, Tayside Biorepository Human Tissue Governance Manager
• Philippa Sterlini, Senior Research Support Officer, Library Academic and Cultural Services
• Dr Carlos Wigderowitz, SREC Convenor, Schools of Life Sciences and Medicine
• Amina Aslam, Solicitor, Legal, Academic and Corporate Governance

The quorum shall be not less than one-third of the total actual membership.

Secretary: Stephanie Wilson, Research Excellence, Policy and Governance Coordinator, Research and Innovation.