Liverpool Health Partners (LHP) and Boehringer Ingelheim UK & Ireland, have committed to a landmark collaboration to transform health outcomes and address inequalities in access to care across Cheshire and Merseyside through a newly signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).

This new partnership was established with a shared purpose – to improve the health and wellbeing of people across Cheshire and Merseyside. It brings together aligned priorities across NHS service delivery, academic excellence and life sciences – working collectively to address health inequalities and deliver on the ambitions set out in the Life Sciences Sector Plan and the NHS 10-Year Health Plan (published on 3 July 2025).

The MoU sets out a detailed programme of collaborative workstreams designed to strengthen Cheshire and Merseyside’s position as a leading research and innovation centre, apply innovation at scale, leverage data and digital tools and enhance capabilities through shared expertise.

Christine Cornforth, Interim Managing Director at LHP, said: “This partnership aligns precisely with LHP’s mission to convene NHS, academic and industry stakeholders to accelerate health innovation. It also responds to the national call for deeper collaboration between the NHS and life sciences sector to improve patient outcomes and reduce the inequalities in access to care that blight our city.”

Professor Tim Jones, Board Chair of LHP and Vice Chancellor of University of Liverpool, added: “Through this partnership with Boehringer Ingelheim we are embedding innovation and research into the fabric of our health system. By working together, we will advance both research and clinical excellence. I am delighted we have been able to make this partnership happen, and I am looking forward to seeing the health, societal and economic benefits that come from it.”

A core focus of the collaboration is addressing health inequalities, with projects prioritising underserved populations, improving access to clinical trials and developing community-based models of care that reflect the lived experiences of local residents.

Key initiatives of the partnership include:

• a Community Research Access Programme to diversify clinical trial participation
• a Chronic Kidney Disease Innovation pathway aligned with national cardiovascular priorities
• a Life-Course Bioresource Programme to support population-level research and personalised care and
• cross-sector secondments to build shared innovation, culture and governance capabilities.

Ben Moynihan, Interim Country Managing Director and Head of Human Pharma, Boehringer UK and Ireland, said: “We are delighted to be working with Liverpool Health Partners to help them address health inequalities across Cheshire and Merseyside by improving access to innovation and therefore outcomes for people living with a range of conditions. We both see the benefits of adopting a preventative approach, and one of the best ways to address this challenge is to bring our different skills together.”