What Understanding Animal Research does

Understanding Animal Research (UAR) is a UK-based not-for-profit Mutual Society (registered MS28954R) and self-described as the UK's only dedicated animal research advocacy organisation. Founded in 2008 and headquartered in London, UAR provides evidence-based public communication about the role of animals in medical, scientific, and veterinary research, serving over 160 life science member organisations including the UK's top ten universities for life science, major pharmaceutical companies (AstraZeneca, GSK, Pfizer, MSD, UCB Pharma, Sanofi), research charities (Cancer Research UK, Wellcome, British Heart Foundation, Alzheimer's Research UK, Parkinson's UK), and government agencies (MRC, MHRA, BBSRC).

UAR's core products centre on a content publishing and aggregation platform. The BARN (Biomedical & Animal Research News) Digest is a daily-updated news aggregation feed sourcing from 150+ member organisations and Concordat signatories. The platform also includes Virtual Laboratory Tours (360-degree access to facilities at Oxford, Bristol, Manchester, MRC Harwell, and Pirbright), the TeacherZone educational portal (curriculum-linked worksheets, speaker requests, school visits), and an extensive resource library (video, image, infographic, document, factsheets). UAR administers the Concordat on Openness on Animal Research, a formal transparency framework signed across the UK animal research community, and coordinates the Science Action Network (#ARnonsense), a community mobilisation campaign for responding to online misinformation.

UAR operates a membership-based business model, funded by recurring membership fees from 150+ life science organisations. As a Mutual Society, it is governed by a board and annual general meeting. Its go-to-market combines sales-led membership recruitment, community-led public education, event-driven engagement (Openness Conference, Paget Lecture, New Scientist Live), and content distribution through its BARN Digest and social media channels. Distribution is UK-focused with international coordination through sister organisations EARA (Europe) and UAR Oceania.

Name

Understanding Animal Research

Legal name

Understanding Animal Research, Mutual Society MS28954R

Website

https://understandinganimalresearch.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Understanding Animal Research is a UK not-for-profit Mutual Society that advocates for openness in animal research, funded by 160+ life science member organisations including universities, pharmaceutical companies, charities, and government agencies, providing public communication, education, and transparency frameworks.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Science advocacy and public engagement

akta.pro primary industry

Animal Welfare & Advocacy Organizations (AFAEALAC)

Keywords

• Animal research advocacy
• Science communication
• Research transparency
• Life sciences outreach
• Public engagement

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership fees: UAR is funded by over 150 life science organisations including universities, pharmaceutical companies, research funders, charities, learned societies, and government agencies. These organisations pay membership fees to support UAR's operations and advocacy work.
2. Donations and grants: UAR is a not-for-profit Mutual Society (registered as MS28954R) supported by its member organisations. As a charity/non-profit, it may also receive grants and donations from supporters.

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Understanding Animal Research (UAR) is a UK-based not-for-profit advocacy and public information organisation that provides evidence-based communication about the role of animals in medical, scientific, and veterinary research. It operates an educational content platform — including the BARN news digest, virtual laboratory tours, TeacherZone educational resources, and media libraries — and administers the Concordat on Openness on Animal Research transparency framework on behalf of life science organisations.

Product overview

Understanding Animal Research operates a public information and advocacy platform focused on animal research transparency. The core offering is educational content comprising the BARN (Biomedical Animal Research News) Digest for news aggregation, Virtual Laboratory Tours providing behind-the-scenes facility access, TeacherZone with curriculum resources, Video/Document/Image/Infographic Libraries for educational materials, an Openness Conference with awards programme, Science Action Network for public engagement, and a Monthly Newsletter. The organisation functions as a not-for-profit Mutual Society funded by over 150 life science member organisations and does not offer software products in the traditional sense.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• BARN (Biomedical Animal Research News) Digest A daily-updated news aggregation resource that collates animal and biomedical research news from UAR's 150+ member organisations and Concordat Signatories, distributed to subscribers as weekly and monthly roundups.
• Virtual Laboratory Tours Behind-the-scenes 360-degree virtual access to leading UK animal research facilities including the University of Oxford, Bristol, Manchester, MRC Harwell, and the Pirbright Institute, hosted at labanimaltour.org.
• TeacherZone Educational Resources An educational portal for teachers and students offering curriculum-aligned worksheets, videos, essay resources, a Request a Speaker programme, and The Animal Research Conversation programme for school engagement.
• Video Library A curated collection of videos explaining animal research processes, animal welfare practices, and medical breakthroughs, made available for educational and media use.
• Document Library A repository of reports, leaflets, factsheets, and regulatory documents about animal research available to member organisations, educators, journalists, and the public.
• Infographic Library A collection of visual resources including statistics, timelines, and explanatory diagrams about animal research for educational and media distribution.
• Image Library A collection of images of animal research facilities, animals, and scientific procedures made available for educational and media use under the UAR media centre.
• Openness Conference An annual conference bringing together Concordat signatories, facility managers, and communications professionals to discuss transparency and openness in UK animal research.
• Openness Awards and Paget Lecture An annual award ceremony and lecture held in London recognising excellence in openness and transparency in animal research across the UK sector.
• Science Action Network (#ARnonsense campaign) A community mobilisation programme enabling supporters to identify and respond to online misinformation about animal research on social media using the hashtag #ARnonsense, with UAR providing resources and talking points.
• Monthly Newsletter A monthly email newsletter delivering the latest UAR articles, research news, webinars, training information, and event updates to subscribers.
• Events and Webinars Programme A programme of educational events and webinars on topics such as filming inside animal research labs, collaborative openness between research facilities and communications teams, and exhibition appearances such as New Scientist Live.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 160 life science organisations funded UAR as of 2025, including the UK's top ten universities for life science, major pharmaceutical companies, leading research charities, and government agencies.
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• European Animal Research Association (EARA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUAR works closely with EARA, its sister organisation for mainland Europe. UAR's membership page explicitly notes that it does not have members that only operate in mainland Europe as those are supported by EARA. The two organisations share the mission of promoting open communication about animal research across Europe.
• Concordat on Openness signatoriescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUAR administers the Concordat on Openness on Animal Research, a formal transparency agreement signed by organisations across the UK that conduct animal research. The Concordat establishes commitments for openness and public communication about animal research.
• Science Action Network membersminorGTM or Marketing PartnerUAR coordinates the Science Action Network, a community of supporters who respond to online misinformation about animal research using the hashtag #ARnonsense. Members receive resources and talking points from UAR to engage in public debate.
• National Centre for the 3Rs (NC3Rs)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUAR frequently references and collaborates with the NC3Rs, the UK government-funded body focused on Replacement, Refinement, and Reduction of animals in research. NC3Rs is one of UAR's 150+ member organisations.
• Universities UKcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUAR lists Universities UK as a member supporter. UUK represents UK universities and is a key stakeholder in the animal research transparency ecosystem.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• European Animal Research Association (EARA): EARA is UAR's direct sister organisation, performing the same animal research advocacy and transparency role for mainland Europe that UAR performs for the UK. Same mission, same membership-based funding model, same Concordat-style transparency initiatives — making it the closest functional peer.
• Americans for Medical Progress (AMP): AMP is the US counterpart to UAR, advocating for the use of animals in medical and scientific research and providing public communication, education, and transparency resources to US research institutions. Operates a comparable member-supported advocacy model in a different geography.
• Foundation for Biomedical Research (FBR): FBR is a US-based non-profit that advocates for biomedical research involving animals, providing public education, media engagement, and policy advocacy similar to UAR's role in the UK. Targets a comparable member base of research institutions and pharmaceutical companies.
• UAR Oceania (Understanding Animal Research Oceania): UAR Oceania is the regional sister organisation extending UAR's advocacy and transparency model to Australia and New Zealand. Functions as a direct geographic peer, applying the same advocacy framework in a different territory.

Emerging players

• National Centre for the 3Rs (NC3Rs): NC3Rs is a UK government-funded body focused on Replacement, Reduction, and Refinement of animals in research. Listed as a UAR member organisation. Different mission emphasis (advancing alternatives vs. defending research) but operates in the same UK animal research ecosystem with overlapping stakeholders.
• Campaign for Science and Engineering (CaSE): CaSE is a UK advocacy alliance promoting public and private investment in science, engineering, and technology. It is a structural peer — a small UK advocacy non-profit funded by member institutions — but focused on science funding rather than animal research specifically.
• Understanding Health Research: An online resource helping the public understand how health research is conducted, including the use of animals. Closely adjacent mission (public education about research methods) with much smaller scale, making UAR a more developed version of the same concept.

Regional players

• AnimalResearch.info: AnimalResearch.info is a multinational information platform explaining animal research to the public, closely linked to EARA and UAR. Operates a complementary content/educational role rather than a direct advocacy mission, but is a strong adjacent peer in the same ecosystem.

Broad incumbents

• Royal Society of Biology: The Royal Society of Biology is a larger UK life sciences membership body that, like UAR, supports public communication of biological research and represents a broad membership of institutions and individuals. Overlaps with UAR on science communication and life sciences advocacy but is broader in scope.

Others

• Concordat on Openness on Animal Research signatories (e.g., MRC, The Francis Crick Institute): The Concordat on Openness is administered by UAR and signed by UK research organisations. While the signatory institutions themselves are not peers of UAR, the Concordat framework functions as an ecosystem in which UAR plays a coordinating role comparable to how a non-profit might coordinate a multi-stakeholder transparency standard.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/animalresearch
• YouTubeyoutube.com/animalevidence
• Facebookfacebook.com/UnderstandingAnimalResearch
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/understanding-animal-research
• Instagraminstagram.com/understandinganimalresearch

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Understanding Animal Research