Funding & Partners
A decade of strategic investment in public health evidence.
Institutional Home
The STAPM platform is developed and maintained within the School of Medicine and Population Health (SMPH) at the University of Sheffield. As a core output of the Sheffield Addictions Research Group (SARG), our work adheres to the highest standards of academic integrity and professional research governance.
Current Strategic Research Funding
The platform’s core maintenance and methodological development are supported by major national research investments:
NIHR Addictions Policy Research Unit (PRU)
STAPM serves as the primary modelling infrastructure for the NIHR Addictions PRU. This long-term partnership enables our team to provide the UK Government with rapid-response analysis of emerging policy questions.
PHI-UK: Local Health and Global Profits
Supported by UK Research and Innovation - Population health Improvement UK funding, our work with the Local Health and Global Profits consortium extends STAPM’s capabilities into the commercial determinants of health at local level. We focus on simulating the interaction between market dynamics, retail environments, and population health outcomes.
Cancer Research UK (CRUK)
CRUK specifically funds our advancement of Agent-Based Modelling (ABM). This investment allows us to integrate sophisticated behavioural simulations—such as social contagion and habit formation—into national-level tobacco policy appraisals.
Foundational Infrastructure
The STAPM ecosystem is built upon a cumulative portfolio of peer-reviewed grants. This foundational work ensures the platform remains robust, validated, and reproducible:
- NIHR SYNTAX Project: Established the platform’s mechanisms to model tobacco and alcohol pricing policies.
- SPECTRUM: Funded by the UK Prevention Research Partnership (UKPRP), this consortium supported the transition to a modular, R-based architecture. It also supported extension of the platform to Scotland and Wales, and added new economic outcomes.
- UKCTAS: Foundational investment from the UK Centre for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies supported the platform’s early development.
- The SAPM Legacy: The current platform is the technical evolution of the Sheffield Alcohol Policy Model, which established the group’s world-leading reputation with support from a wide range of funders.
Commissioned Policy Appraisal & Impact
We have a proven track record of delivering model-based evidence for national and regional governments. Our work is designed to meet the rigorous requirements of official Impact Assessments and legislative reviews:
- The Scottish Government: Long-standing partnership for Alcohol MUP review and tobacco pricing appraisal.
- The Welsh Government: Provision of technical evidence for the continuation and uprating of MUP in Wales.
- Public Health Scotland & Public Health Wales: Collaborative projects focusing on regional health inequalities and treatment service modelling.
Acknowledgements & Disclaimers
The research, data tools, and policy projections presented on this website are the independent work of the STAPM modelling team at the University of Sheffield. The views and conclusions expressed here are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official positions or policies of any of our funding bodies.