Our Team

Under the leadership of Professor Alan Stein, our research group focusses on elucidating the key mechanisms underpinning child development including the intergenerational transmission of difficulties in the context of adversity. Lifelong health is determined by more than just our genes: experiences early in life and at other sensitive periods of development can affect our brains in ways that may impact our health as we grow older. This knowledge has important implications for both policy and practice, but despite its significance, the science behind early brain development is not widely disseminated, particularly to front line staff working with children and parents across health, education, social services and the criminal justice system.

In partnership with the Palix Foundation, we are working on an Oxfordshire-wide project to engage policy-makers, practitioners and the public with the Brain Story. The Brain Story is a narrative framework that shares key scientific knowledge about early brain development through tools, resources and a certification course, with the aim of building resilience in families and communities. Our team is developing a programme to explore and evaluate different ways of implementing the Brain Story to maximise its reach and impact.

Please contact us if you would like to discuss how the Brain Story might be relevant to your organisation or place of work; we’d be delighted to hear from you!