Imperial College London and University of Cumbria have formed a partnership to open a new medical school at the University of Cumbria’s new campus in the centre of Carlisle. It will open in 2025 with 50 graduate-entry students and offer a bespoke 4-year programme designed to train doctors who will help to improve health outcomes in Cumbria and the North West. Applying Imperial’s expertise in medical education and University of Cumbria’s experience in training nurses, midwives and other professions allied to medicine, we aim to produce doctors who are embedded in their local community ready to contribute to services across the region and beyond.

University of Cumbria has a strong portfolio of research across multiple disciplines with an emphasis on equality and positive transformation of health and social outcomes, whilst Imperial College London has a global reputation for research that translates scientific advances into improvements in health. In collaboration with local NHS Partners and other local stakeholders, we will develop research groups that bring education, research, and employment opportunities to the North West.

The key aim of the new school is to recruit, train and retain doctors for the specific needs of the community in Cumbria, addressing the health inequalities in North West England identified in the 2010 Marmot Report and which have worsened over the past decade. Through close collaboration with local service leaders and networks within Cumbria we will ensure that the new school is aligned with local service configuration and workforce planning needs for the future.

The school will focus on creating compassionate, adaptable, innovative doctors educated to meet the needs of the local community, whilst maintaining academic excellence. Working closely with local clinical partners, we will develop a school that supports a sustainable model for medical practitioner training and retention to address the current shortfall. The new school will prepare students with the knowledge, skills and mindset required to engage in the delivery of future healthcare for the NHS and Cumbria.