Help shape research on what it’s like to be pregnant, breastfeeding, or caring for a baby during a big infection outbreak – like COVID

We’re working on a project called RECENTRE which is all about understanding what is like to go through an infection outbreak when you are pregnant, breastfeeding or caring for babies.

Outbreaks, sometimes called epidemics (when they affect several countries) or pandemics (when they spread around the world, like COVID), can bring unique challenges for people in these groups. But too often they are left out of research.

That means their needs and experiences aren’t always considered when plans are made for future pandemics.

We want to change that.

RECENTRE aims to develop new proposals to tackle this challenge. The project is led Dr Shema Tariq and Dr Marthe Le Prevost. Shema is a researcher and medical doctor who specialises in women's health, and Marthe is a researcher and children’s nurse who specialises in infections. The RECENTRE team brings together a wide range of people, including doctors and nurses, researchers on a wide range of topics, staff from Tommy’s, (the UK’s leading charity for research in pregnancy), and most importantly, pregnant people and parents of babies. Together we will try and make sure we are better able to prepare for outbreaks in these groups in the future.

Ways to get involved

We are looking for members of the public who have experience of pregnancy in the last 5 years (since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic), or who have a child aged under 5 to get involved in shaping this project. You can get involved in two ways:

1. Join the Community Advisory Board

We are recruiting people who have been pregnant since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, or have children under the age of 5, to join our Community Advisory Board.

The board will be made up of 6-8 people with experiences of pregnancy or having a baby or young child. Each person will bring their own unique experience and views. There are no wrong or right views – we want to hear from different people. The Board will be invited to share their views, knowledge and experience of how infection outbreaks affect pregnancy, breastfeeding and babies.

Community Advisory Board members will take part in:

• Two half day meetings (with the option to join online or in-person), and
• One 2 full-day in-person workshop (called a ‘research sandpit’) in central London

A research sandpit is an interactive workshop where people with different experiences and backgrounds come together to help create new research plans.

We expect the time commitment to be around 3 full days spread out over 15 months, starting in January 2026.

2. Join the core project team

We are also looking for two members of the Community Advisory Board to join the core project team. What you do as a core team member will depend on your experience and interest.  

You might get involved by:

• thinking about new research ideas
• helping to organise events
• writing or reviewing articles and blog posts.

Core team members meet once a month (online or in a hybrid format). The total time commitment is about half a day per month including meeting preparation.

What we can offer

Members of the public who join the project will get:

• £75 per half day (e.g. for a meeting including preparation) in your choice of cash or vouchers. Most meetings will be online/ hybrid.
• Travel expenses and childcare costs will be reimbursed, although children are welcome at in person meetings and we will provide on-site childcare for workshops.

You will also be supported by project staff (in advance, during and after meetings), to ensure that you can participate fully and comfortably in the meetings. Co-Production Collective can support you by discussing and ensuring accessibility adjustments tailored to your needs, as well as provide wellbeing advice and guidance relating to the project. Shema and Marthe (the lead researchers) can support with any training you might need to take part in the project, e.g. writing blogs, reading scientific articles.

About you

This project is about making sure the needs and perspectives of pregnant people and parents caring for young children are included in research on infectious diseases. We want to hear about your experiences of pregnancy and/ or parenting during and since the COVID-19 pandemic. This includes people who:

• Are pregnant at the moment or will soon become parents (including dads, adoptive parents, and non-birthing parents).
• Have been pregnant or have become a parent (including dads and non-birthing parents) since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 – this includes anyone who has had a miscarriage, stillbirth, lost a baby, or had an abortion.
• Have experience of breastfeeding, chest-feeding or formula feeding since January 2020.

We want to hear from all kinds of people in the UK. Everyone’s background and life experience is important.

Next steps

If you fit the criteria above and you would like to use your experience of, or views on how infection outbreaks affect pregnancy, breastfeeding and babies then we’d love to work with you.

We know that some communities are underrepresented in projects like this. We would therefore love to hear from people who can identify with one or more of the following:

• A person from the global majority - Black, Brown or other racialised communities
• A person who is based outside of London
• A non-birthing parent, including dads and adoptive parents

In general, we want to hear from people from many different walks of life – all different races, religions, ages, genders, sexualities, abilities, family situations, and more. By listening to many voices, we can make sure our research is fair and helpful for as many people as possible.

To express your interest, please complete this form: RECENTRE expression of interest form  

The form asks you to tell us:

• What has motivated you to apply to contribute to the RECENTRE project [max 250 words]
• Why you think you would be a good fit for this role? [max 250 words].

We will choose applications based on your answers to the questions and how they meet the experience required for the role.

The deadline to apply is 12 noon (UK time) on Friday 5 December.

Our first half-day meeting will be held 2-5pm on 20 January 2026. Even if you cannot attend on this date, you are still very welcome to apply.

We aim to recruit a wide range of members of the public. If we get a lot of interest, it may not be possible to involve everyone who applies

We will be in touch shortly after the deadline. If you need assistance submitting your expression of interest, or have any queries about the role, please contact our Research Fellow, Rosamund: rosamund.greiner@ucl.ac.uk

Headline photo: Canva Pro - IIlustration from UCL