What Accelerating Clinical Trials Ltd does

Accelerating Clinical Trials Ltd (ACT) is a UK-incorporated social enterprise founded in 2021 that delivers commercial and investigator-initiated blood cancer clinical trials on behalf of global pharmaceutical companies and the UK academic haematology community. The company funds and has direct operating access to two established NHS-embedded trials networks — the Therapy Acceleration Programme (TAP), covering 15 centres with 23 trials and over 1,100 patients accrued, and the IMPACT stem cell transplant and cellular therapy network, one of only two such networks globally, covering 12 centres with 7 trials and over 900 patients — giving sponsors single-point access to 27 research sites and a catchment population of approximately 20 million.

ACT's core offering is full-service clinical trial management for haemato-oncology, spanning bespoke clinical delivery, study design, regulatory and HTA submission support, statistical advice, site feasibility, project management and patient advocacy. The platform combines NHS-embedded principal investigators (including globally recognised KOLs led by founder Prof. Charles Craddock CBE) with integrated genomics, diagnostics and translational science so that trial outputs can support registrational submissions to MHRA and NICE.

Revenue is generated through professional-services contracts for both investigator-initiated and industry-sponsored trials delivered to registrational standards; pricing is not publicly disclosed. All surplus income is reinvested into UK haemato-oncology trials infrastructure (via the DIDACT Foundation) and patient-benefit projects. ACT is supported financially by three charities — Cure Leukaemia, Anthony Nolan and NHS Blood and Transplant — and was identified as a transformative model in Lord O'Shaughnessy's 2023 UK government review of commercial clinical trials.

Name

Accelerating Clinical Trials Ltd

Legal name

Accelerating Clinical Trials Ltd

Website

https://act4patients.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Accelerating Clinical Trials Ltd is a UK social enterprise delivering commercial and investigator-initiated blood cancer clinical trials via the NHS-embedded TAP and IMPACT networks (27 research centres, ~20M catchment), serving global pharmaceutical sponsors and UK academic haematology investigators.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Clinical Trial Services

NAICS

Scientific Research and Development Services (5417)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Clinical Trial Site Operations & Study Coordination (HLAGACAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Clinical Site Start-Up & Activation (Regulatory/Ethics/Contracts) (HLAGACAC), Clinical Operations & Monitoring FSP (CRA/CTM/Start-up) (HLAGAOAA)

Keywords

• Clinical trial delivery
• Haemato-oncology research
• Blood cancer trials
• Cellular therapy trials
• Translational genomics

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Clinical Trial Delivery Services: ACT generates revenue through delivery of both investigator-initiated and industry-sponsored clinical trials to registrational standards. The company reinvests all surplus income to support projects that benefit patients.
2. Pharmaceutical Industry Partnerships: Revenue generated from working with global pharmaceutical companies on pivotal trials, delivering registration-enabling data for drug approvals by MHRA and NICE.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

ACT delivers a full suite of clinical trial management services for blood cancers, including bespoke clinical delivery, study design, regulatory and HTA submissions support, specialised statistical advice, optimised trial costings, feasibility and site selection, and project management oversight for both investigator-initiated and industry-sponsored trials. The company funds and operates two UK clinical trials networks — TAP (15 centres, 1,100+ patients across 23 trials) and IMPACT (12 centres, 900+ patients across 7 trials) — embedded within NHS teaching hospitals, providing direct single-point access to 27 research sites with a 20 million catchment population.

Product overview

ACT operates as a single unified clinical trial delivery platform for blood cancers, combining in-house services with two distinct named trial networks. The core offering is ACT Clinical Trial Delivery Services, which encompasses bespoke clinical delivery, regulatory and HTA submission support, study design, statistical advice, site selection, and project management for both investigator-initiated and industry-sponsored trials. This core is underpinned by two funded network offerings: the TAP (Therapy Acceleration Programme) Network — focused on new drug and combination trials across 15 centres and over 1,100 accrued patients — and the IMPACT Network — focused on stem cell transplant and cellular therapy trials across 12 centres and over 900 accrued patients. Together these networks provide direct access to 27 established NHS research sites with a catchment population of approximately 20 million. A complementary content offering, the Let's Talk Blood Cancer Podcast, supports patient engagement and awareness.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• ACT Clinical Trial Delivery Services A full suite of clinical trial management services for blood cancers, including bespoke clinical delivery, study design from concept to operationalisation, regulatory and HTA submission support, specialised statistical advice, optimised trial costings, robust data integrity, feasibility and site selection, project management oversight, and patient advocacy. Targeted at pharmaceutical companies and academic investigators running investigator-initiated or industry-sponsored trials.
• TAP (Therapy Acceleration Programme) Network ACT-funded network of 15 research centres (expanded from 12) embedded within NHS teaching hospitals specialising in delivery of trials of new drugs and combinations in haemato-oncology. Has opened 23 pioneering trials accruing more than 1,100 patients. Targeted at pharmaceutical sponsors and academic investigators of early phase blood cancer drug trials.
• IMPACT (Stem Cell Transplant and Cell Therapy Trials) Network ACT-funded stem cell transplant and cellular therapy trials network — one of only two such networks globally. 12 centres plus affiliated sites across the UK; since inception, 7 trials have opened accruing more than 900 patients. Targeted at pharmaceutical sponsors and academic investigators of stem cell transplant and cellular therapy trials.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 2,000 patients recruited to practice informing trials across TAP and IMPACT networks
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• DIDACT FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegistered charity founded by senior academic haematologists to optimise UK blood cancer trials delivery. Works closely with ACT to engage the academic haematology community. Can act as Sponsor of investigator-initiated trials. Provides education and training for clinicians and nurses. Independent vehicle for reinvestment of ACT surplus income into patient benefit projects.
• TAP Network (Therapy Acceleration Programme)coreOthersACT funds the established TAP network of 15 research centres (expanded from 12) specialising in new drug and combination trials in haemato-oncology. Has delivered 23 pioneering trials with over 1,100 patients generating globally significant results.
• IMPACT NetworkcoreOthersACT funds the IMPACT network - one of only two stem cell transplant trials networks globally. 12 centres plus affiliated sites across UK. Has delivered 7 trials with over 900 patients. Focuses on stem cell transplant and cellular therapy trials.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Parexel International: Large global CRO with deep oncology and haematology trial delivery experience, currently private. Comparable as a competitor for industry-sponsored blood-cancer trials, although operating globally rather than UK-only.
• Syneos Health: Global clinical and commercial solutions provider offering CRO services including oncology trial delivery. Comparable in delivering industry-sponsored haemato-oncology trials, though at much larger and global scale than ACT.
• ICON plc: Global CRO offering full-service clinical trial delivery including oncology and site management services. Competes for the same pharma-sponsored haemato-oncology trial budgets as ACT, at significantly larger scale.
• Medpace: Global mid-size CRO with a strong oncology and haematology franchise and a lean operating model. Comparable to ACT in trial delivery for oncology sponsors but operates globally and at far larger scale.
• Worldwide Clinical Trials: Mid-size global CRO with a strong oncology and haematology practice, focused on complex therapeutic areas. Comparable to ACT in oncology/hematology trial specialisation but operating across multiple geographies.
• IQVIA: World's largest CRO/SMO with global site-management and oncology trial capabilities. Competes with ACT for industry-sponsored haemato-oncology trials but operates at vastly broader scale and global footprint.

Direct peers

• MRC Clinical Trials Unit at UCL: A leading UK academic clinical trials unit delivering oncology and methodology-rich trials in the NHS and internationally. Directly comparable to ACT in its academic-CTU-style trial delivery model and NHS-embedded investigator relationships, though broader in therapeutic scope.
• Cancer Research UK Clinical Trials Units: Network of CRUK-funded clinical trials units across UK universities running cancer trials through NHS teaching hospitals. Closely comparable to ACT's TAP/IMPACT networks — UK-only, oncology-focused, NHS-embedded, and academic-KOL-driven.
• Experimental Cancer Medicine Centres (ECMC): UK-wide network of early-phase cancer trial centres funded by CRUK and NIHR, embedded in NHS teaching hospitals. Comparable to ACT in providing UK NHS-embedded early-phase trial infrastructure and KOL access for oncology sponsors.

Others

• Cure Leukaemia: UK charity that designed and instigated the TAP programme and is a founding financial backer of ACT. An ecosystem participant rather than a direct competitor — closely tied to ACT's lineage and funding base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/act4patients
• LinkedInuk.linkedin.com/company/accelerating-clinical-trials-ltd

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Accelerating Clinical Trials Ltd