Facilitating world-class research
If your research project requires ethical review and approval by the University (or you have a query about a potential application), please send this directly to the relevant committee (and not to the Central University Research Ethics Committee, which does not review or approve individual applications).
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Primarily for researchers from the Medical Sciences and Mathematical, Physical and Life Sciences divisions, where the research does not require review by the National Health Service ethics review service
Dr Helen Barnby-Porritt, MS IDREC Manager, Research Services, University of Oxford, Wellington Square, Oxford, OX1 2JD
Email: ethics@medsci.ox.ac.uk. Tel: 01865 (6)16577 (Monday–Thursday).
Primarily for researchers in the social sciences and humanities; depending on research methodology
Jennifer Blaikie, SSH IDREC Manager, Research Services, University of Oxford, Wellington Square, Oxford, OX1 2JD
Email: ethics@socsci.ox.ac.uk Tel: 01865 (6)16578
Primarily for medical research taking place outside the UK and the EU, or if the research is funded by the US National Institutes of Health or another US federal funding agency
Dr Rebecca Bryant, OxTREC Manager, Research Services, University of Oxford, Wellington Square, Oxford, OX1 2JD
Email: oxtrec@admin.ox.ac.uk. Tel: 01865 (2)82585 (Wednesday mornings, Thursdays and Fridays)
Some individual departments (primarily in the social sciences) have their own research ethics committees that review and approve applications for research involving human participants and personal data.
Applications from students and researchers from these departments should be sent directly to the DRECs.
If your department does not have a DREC, please check which divisional research ethics committee should review your project.
CUREC is responsible for establishing, promoting, implementing, and monitoring policies and procedures for the review, approval, and monitoring of research projects involving human participants or personal data. It does not review or approve individual research project applications.
Secretary of the Central University Research Ethics Committee, University of Oxford, Wellington Square, Oxford, OX1 2JD
Email: curec@admin.ox.ac.uk
If you have a concern about an Oxford University research project with which you have been involved, please speak to the relevant researcher, who will do their best to answer your query. The researcher should acknowledge your concern within 10 working days and give you an indication of how they intend to deal with it. If you remain unhappy or wish to make a formal complaint, please contact the chair of the appropriate research ethics committee at the University of Oxford (or the University’s Clinical Trials and Research Governance (CTRG) team, in the case of studies that required prior review by CTRG) via the committee contacts listed above.
If a committee chair receives a formal complaint, they may delegate the matter for appropriate action, including referring the matter to CUREC. The chair may otherwise determine the process for dealing with the case as they consider fit.
