Pandemic Institute: Liverpool research base opens

Experts will try identify risks of future pandemics and examine community responses

A £10m research centre has been created in Liverpool to prevent, prepare for and respond to any future pandemics.

The Pandemic Institute has been opened by the city's council, universities and clinicians in Paddington Village.

Liverpool was chosen as an area to help shape national policy during the coronavirus pandemic when it hosted the UK's first mass-testing programme in November 2020.

The institute's director said the city was "perfectly placed" for research.

Prof Matthew Baylis said: "Liverpool is a global city with expertise in many fields relevant to pandemics, including medical, tropical and veterinary research."

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He added: "Uniquely, [the research base] will take a holistic view, from looking at future threats through to the response of communities and the healthcare system as well as treatments such as medicines and vaccines."

Covid cases fell by 21% in the city after the community testing pilot last November.

Liverpool also hosted several pilot events to test crowd safety and the impact of easing coronavirus restrictions.

The institute's director Prof Matthew Baylis said Liverpool was "perfectly placed" for the base

The institute, which has been funded by the Innova Medical Group, will collaborate with hubs all over the world.

Prof Baylis said the team's work would "prepare the world better for future pandemics by identifying risks, to respond quicker and to recover more effectively".

People queued up outside a Covid test centre in Liverpool on the first day of the mass-testing pilot

The institute is a partnership between the University of Liverpool, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Liverpool City Council and its city region combined authority.