A topping-out ceremony has taken place at the Old Road Campus to mark the completion of the main structure of the University’s new Global Health Building – a major new teaching and research facility and a key part of the University’s efforts to improve health and save lives all over the world.
Professor Susanna Dunachie, Director of the Centre for Global Health Research in the Nuffield Department of Medicine, Richard Haynes, Professor of Renal Medicine and Clinical Trials, in Oxford Population Health, and Trevor Payne, the University’s Director of Estates, marked the milestone by adding the last concrete to the top of the building’s structure. Also present for the topping-out was Steve Vaux, Operations Director at main contractor Morgan Sindall. Work will now continue towards an expected completion date in summer 2026.
When it opens later next year, the £35m facility will house around 250 staff, including researchers from the Nuffield Department of Medicine’s Centre for Tropical Medicine and Global Health, and from Oxford Population Health. Its 4,500m2 of space over four storeys will include offices for both departments alongside areas to collaborate and socialise and flexible teaching spaces in the basement.
Professor Susanna Dunachie said ‘Global Health research addresses health problems worldwide, with a focus on partnership and equity. This flagship building will be a world centre for excellence in global health research, bringing together international researchers to train, learn and share knowledge. The two departments will collaborate with multi-disciplinary researchers across the globe and within Oxford to support discovery and the delivery of life-changing solutions.’
Head of Department, Professor Sir Rory Collins, said ‘Despite improvements in healthcare in recent decades, health problems still result in avoidable suffering and premature death for millions of people globally. The new Global Health Building will provide a dedicated space for collaboration on some of the most important questions about the causes, prevention, and treatment of diseases affecting people across the world. It will also enable us to train the next generation of population health scientists in dedicated teaching space.’
The building is designed to be comfortable all year round without needing much energy for heating and cooling, with full Passivhaus certification to support delivery of the University’s strategic goal of reaching net zero by 2035.
To do this, it will use clever design features to keep heat in during the winter while also staying pleasantly cool in summer – for example, windows that are carefully sized and positioned so they are in shade at the hottest times of day.
It is also built to an exceptionally high standard – for instance every joint and seam in the building has to be painstakingly sealed to provide much higher airtightness than a normal structure; this enables the sophisticated ventilation and heat recovery systems the Passivhaus approach depends on to run efficiently.
'It's a pleasure to see the progress that's been made on this superb new building – one of the last steps in realising the University's long-term vision of transforming the Old Road Campus into a world-leading centre for biomedical science,’ said Trevor Payne. ‘It's also a vital milestone on our journey towards reaching net zero by 2035, designed and built to consume very little energy while providing comfortable, attractive, flexible spaces for teaching, research and collaboration. We look forward to seeing the completed building make a lasting contribution to work that saves lives and improves health all over the world.’
James York, Area Director for Morgan Sindall Construction, added ‘Reaching this structural milestone is a key moment in delivering a facility that will greatly enhance Oxford’s global health research capabilities.
‘This building will create a sustainable, modern space fostering the collaboration and innovation essential to medical breakthroughs. We are proud to support the University of Oxford in providing a building that meets the highest environmental standards while offering the flexible spaces needed for future research.’
View a timelapse video showing the construction of the building so far.