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REDCap Overview

What is REDCap?

REDCap (Research Electronic Data Capture) is a secure, web-based application designed for building and managing online surveys and databases. Find out more about REDCap here.

The CAM:IDE provides two separate REDCap instances for data collection:

  • REDCap Safe Haven
  • REDCap Anonymised

What is the difference between REDCap Anonymised and Safe Haven?

REDCap Safe Haven is used to collect identifiable and sensitive data. REDCap Safe Haven is hosted within the University of Cambridge Secure Research Environment, which is ISO 27001 certified and Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPT) compliant.

REDCap Anonymised is used for studies that do not collect identifiable and sensitive data.

Some studies use both environments. For example, you may be granted access to a REDCap Anonymised database for training purposes and a REDCap Safe Haven database to collect study data.

Please make sure to follow instructions that are relevant to the specific REDCap environment (Anonymised or Safe Haven) and database you have been approved to access. If you are unsure which environment applies to you, please contact your study coordinator or the CAM:IDE helpdesk at helpdesk@camide.cam.ac.uk.

How can I be granted access to REDCap?

Access to REDCap is granted on a project-by-project basis.

For existing projects:

  • Access to a REDCap database must be requested by the Chief Investigator (CI) or one of their nominated delegates. Instructions for CIs and delegates are available here.
  • If you are unsure who the CI or delegates are for the project you are trying to access, please contact us at helpdesk@camide.cam.ac.uk.

For new projects:

For anything not covered on this page, use the Contact Us button at the bottom right of the screen, or email helpdesk@camide.cam.ac.uk.

Last updated 14/05/2026