National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit officially joins the Nuffield Department of Women’s & Reproductive Health
Published on Monday, 02 February 2026 Post
The University of Oxford is pleased to announce that, as of Monday 2 February, the National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit (NPEU) has officially joined the Nuffield Department of Women's & Reproductive Health (NDWRH).
This marks a significant milestone in a partnership first announced in 2025 and represents a major strategic step in strengthening Oxford's leadership in women's, maternal and reproductive health research and education.
The move unites expertise across the full translational pathway - from health research and large-scale clinical trials to clinical practice, education and policy impact. By joining NDWRH, NPEU will enhance and expand collaborative research focused on improving outcomes for women and babies in the UK and globally.
The strategic transition to bring together NPEU with NDWRH to consolidate and grow research into women's, maternal and children's health was agreed by the Heads of Department Professor Krina Zondervan of NDWRH, Professor Prabhat Jha (and his predecessor Professor Rory Collins) of Nuffield Department of Population Health (NDPH), alongside NPEU Director Professor Marian Knight and the Head of the Medical Sciences Division Professor Gavin Screaton, who recognise the opportunities created by bringing NPEU and NDWRH together.
Professor Krina Zondervan, Head of the Nuffield Department of Women's & Reproductive Health, said:
The formal integration of NPEU into WRH is an exciting moment for women's and reproductive health research and education at Oxford. By bringing together complementary strengths in clinical research, trials, data science and global health, we are creating a powerful, unified platform to accelerate discovery, translation and impact.
Professor Marian Knight, Director of the National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit, added:
Joining WRH provides NPEU with new opportunities to deepen collaboration with clinical and academic colleagues working across the breadth of early life, women's and reproductive health. This alignment strengthens our shared ambition to generate high-quality evidence that improves care and saves the lives of women and children globally.
The partnership will:
- Strengthen and unify women's health research and education at Oxford
- Bring together researchers working across the entire translational pathway
- Combine applied health research and clinical trials expertise with established global maternal and child health research networks
- Enhance the design and delivery of teaching and training programmes
- Increase collective capacity to deliver research that improves healthcare and outcomes for women and children worldwide
Planning for a new location for NPEU and some NDWRH teams are underway and expected to be complete by the end of Hilary term.
