BALR & BIOREME: Our Next Chapter
BIOREME will be joining the British Association for Lung Research (BALR), marking an important new chapter for our community and its place within the UK respiratory research landscape.
Sustaining the BIOREME Community
BIOREME was established through EPSRC-funding to bring mathematical modelling and in silico approaches into respiratory medicine. Over the past four years, we have built an interdisciplinary community connecting researchers, clinicians, industry partners and patients across the UK and beyond.
Through research sandpits, study groups, small starter grants, fellowships and annual conferences, BIOREME has supported early career researchers, strengthened cross-sector collaboration, and helped catalyse significant follow-on research funding. Just as importantly, it has created an open and inclusive space where computational and clinical perspectives genuinely inform one another.
As our current funding period concludes in 2026, the Steering Committee has focused on how best to sustain our community and ensure that modelling approaches continue to influence UK respiratory research.
The British Association for Lung Research (BALR) provides an ideal long-term home. For over twenty years, BALR has promoted experimental and clinical respiratory research in the UK, fostering exchange between scientists and clinicians and organising regular scientific meetings. As a registered charity, it plays an important role in supporting the national respiratory research community.
While BALR has strong foundations in physiology and clinical science, it has not historically had a dedicated focus on mathematical and computational modelling. BIOREME brings that expertise. In turn, BALR offers an established national platform within which this work can continue to grow.
By joining forces, we strengthen both communities. Embedding modelling within a national respiratory society and ensuring BIOREME’s network continues in a sustainable way.
What This Means in Practice
This collaboration is designed to preserve what has made BIOREME distinctive, while embedding it within a sustainable national structure.
BIOREME will become part of the BALR community while maintaining a clear identity and focus on mathematical and computational modelling in respiratory research. BIOREME-focused sessions will form part of the BALR annual conference programme, providing a dedicated, yet integrated space for mathematical modellers in the wider respiratory research community.
In practical terms, this means that the conversations, collaborations and cross-disciplinary exchange that have defined BIOREME will continue within a broader national forum. Workshops, meetings and opportunities aligned with BIOREME’s mission will be shared through BALR’s communication channels, strengthening links across the community.
Benefits for the BIOREME Community
For BIOREME members, this transition is about keeping the network together while creating new opportunities.
By becoming part of BALR, members will be connected to an established national respiratory research society with a long-standing reputation for bringing together scientists and clinicians. This broadens the reach of modelling and computational research, placing it firmly alongside experimental and clinical perspectives.
For early career researchers in particular, the collaboration offers continued access to national networking opportunities, conference platforms, and cross-disciplinary dialogue. Integration within BALR also strengthens the visibility of modelling approaches in mainstream respiratory research settings, supporting translation and impact.
Importantly, BIOREME’s network does not disappear. It becomes embedded within a wider structure. Modelling and in silico approaches will continue to shape discussions while opening up wider opportunities for collaboration, future research development, funding, and partnership.
Joining BALR
To continue participating in BIOREME’s next phase, members will join the British Association for Lung Research (BALR) through its standard membership structure.
BALR membership is open to researchers across career stages, with annual fees of:
£40 for full membership
£20 for student membership (registered for a higher degree)
An optional ERS membership add-on (£30)
Membership provides access to a wide range of professional benefits, including:
Discounted registration for all BALR events and the BTS Winter Meeting
Discounted ERS membership
Eligibility for travel awards to attend BALR events and international conferences such as ATS and ERS
Eligibility for Young Investigator, Early Career Investigator and Best Poster awards
Opportunities to host the BALR summer conference at your institution
Free advertising of research positions across BALR channels
Highlighting of member publications and press coverage
Discounted access to training (including Royal Society of Biology courses)
Opportunities to contribute blog posts and engage with the wider respiratory research community
As BIOREME transitions into this new structure, membership of BALR provides a sustainable framework for continuing the collaborations, visibility and professional development opportunities for our community.
By joining BALR, members remain part of BIOREME’s interdisciplinary network, now embedded within a national respiratory research society that supports career development, scientific exchange and long-term impact.
Further information and registration details can be found on the BALR website.
Looking Ahead
This collaboration marks the beginning of BIOREME’s next chapter. By joining BALR, we are ensuring that interdisciplinary respiratory modelling has a sustainable and visible home within the UK research landscape.
Our aim remains the same: to connect disciplines, support emerging researchers, and translate modelling innovation into clinical and patient impact. This next phase ensures that the community we have built continues to grow and influence the future of respiratory research in the UK.