ATTC network establishes first Advanced Therapies NHS Readiness Toolkit

ATTC network establishes first Advanced Therapies NHS Readiness Toolkit

The toolkit will enable widespread clinical adoption and improved patient access to advanced therapies across the UK

UK, 26^th April 2021 – The Advanced Therapy Treatment Centre (ATTC) network has today launched the Advanced Therapies NHS Readiness Toolkit to accelerate clinical adoption of advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs) within the NHS and help reduce the burden on clinical centres as they plan to deliver these novel therapies to patients.

Roll-out of this toolkit across the UK health service strengthens its leading position and enhances the readiness of hospitals nationwide for rapid clinical trial set up. The UK accounts for 12% of the global ATMP clinical trials with the ATTC network supporting over half of those. The availability of this new toolkit means NHS staff can easily access the resources they need to evaluate their organisation’s readiness and establish the necessary infrastructure for delivery of advanced therapies.

The toolkit is a free online resource. Users can access the latest guidance and standardised templates to rapidly advance the planning and preparations necessary for running investigative clinical trials or administering a commissioned ATMP. This new resource supports development of clinical and financial governance, regulatory and commissioning frameworks, business cases and contracts, risk management protocols, implementation planning, logistics, pharmacy, clinical administration, cross-specialty working, and service evaluation and outcomes. 

The ATTC network was established in 2018 through funding from UKRI’s Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund in response to the challenge faced by the NHS in the adoption of these potentially life-changing, but highly disruptive, treatments. This initiative is supported by the three regional UK centres; Innovate Manchester Advanced Therapy Centre Hub (iMATCH), Midlands and Wales Advanced Therapy Treatment Centre (MW-ATTC) and Northern Alliance Advanced Therapies Treatment Centre (NA-ATTC) operating within the NHS framework and coordinated by the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult (CGT Catapult).

Since its creation, the network has worked with 64 partners in industry, academia and the healthcare system to advance the global competitiveness of the UK cell and gene therapy ecosystem. Among many achievements so far, the programme has created over 80 new high skilled jobs and trained over 5,000 people across multiple industries. The network has also supported two international companies to open offices in the UK and established an Industry Advisory Group of 43 partners to encourage pre-competitive collaboration across the industry.

Richard Hebdon, Deputy Director - Health & Life Sciences at Innovate UK – part of UK Research and Innovation said:

“Advanced therapies are transforming the way we treat so many conditions, such as blindness, cancer, heart failure and liver disease. Though the therapies are advanced, we want the adoption of them to be simple. The toolkit will enable the NHS to call up online resources at a click of a mouse. This will help support and grow the UK’s role in this exciting sector and ultimately lead to better outcomes for patients.”

Professor Phil Newsome, Director, MW-ATTC said:

“The NHS Readiness Toolkit is driving best practice across the UK and cementing our position as one of the world-leaders in the development and roll-out of advanced therapies. It is already encouraging to see the positive impact on hospitals nationwide as the resources are being tailored to accelerate developing the systems, infrastructure, and governance at a local level.

We look forward to continuous development of the toolkit to assist NHS trusts as they ramp up to meet the clinical and operational requirements for these complex and innovative therapies.”

Ewan Morrison, Director of Pharmacy, NHS National Services Scotland said:

“The development and distribution of this toolkit is an excellent example of collaboration across the ATTC network. Expert contributors from across the UK are sharing exemplar resources to provide a starting point and ongoing reference for organisations who aspire to provide ATMP treatments. This is already reducing the time spent on initiation activities, increasing efficiency and overall helping to improve patient safety for all aspects of ATMP use.”

Matthew Durdy, CEO, CGT Catapult commented:

“This is another great example of the UK’s commitment to the cell and gene therapy sector. Facilitation of adoption and use of ATMPs is key to growing the industry and increasing patient access. This synthesis of the knowledge developed by these leading Advanced Therapy Treatment Centres is a great landmark and it will be used across the UK and internationally.

The timely investment and backing from Government is now translating into positive impact for patients and strengthening the UK’s global position in supporting widespread clinical adoption of these life changing treatments.”

You access the toolkit from: https://www.theattcnetwork.co.uk/advanced-therapies-nhs-readiness-toolkit

About the Advanced Therapy Treatment Centre (ATTC) network

The Advanced Therapy Treatment Centre network was set up to address barriers to the clinical adoption of advanced therapies by increasing the capacity and capability of the NHS to efficiently deliver the growing number of these new medicines. The network is coordinated by the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult and comprises partners in industry, academia and healthcare providers and three regional UK centres: Innovate Manchester Advanced Therapy Centre Hub (iMATCH); the Midlands-Wales Advanced Therapy Treatment Centre (MW-ATTC, comprising Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Leicester, Nottingham and Swansea); the Northern Alliance Advanced Therapies Treatment Centre (NA-ATTC, comprising Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds and Newcastle). The network was established through funding from the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund, and the fund is delivered by UK Research and Innovation. For more information please visit theattcnetwork.co.uk.

About the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult

The Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult was established as an independent centre of excellence to advance the growth of the UK cell and gene therapy industry, by bridging the gap between scientific research and full-scale commercialisation. With more than 300 employees focusing on cell and gene therapy technologies, it works with partners in academia and industry to ensure these life-changing therapies can be developed for use in health services throughout the world. It offers leading-edge capability, technology and innovation to enable companies to take products into clinical trials and provide clinical, process development, manufacturing, regulatory, health economics and market access expertise. Its aim is to make the UK the most compelling and logical choice for UK and international partners to develop and commercialise these advanced therapies. The Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult works with Innovate UK. For more information please visit ct.catapult.org.uk or visit http://www.gov.uk/innovate-uk.

About the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund

This project has been funded by the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund, part of the government’s modern Industrial Strategy. The fund is delivered by UK Research and Innovation.