About the study
The C-GULL Study will launch in Spring 2023 bringing together citizens, researchers and clinicians from across the Liverpool City Region and wider afield to make one of the largest family studies in the UK
Children in Liverpool have unique health needs and challenges just like children in any other community. Some of these challenges include poverty, limited access to healthy food options, and high rates of childhood obesity and other health problems. The Liverpool area also has a higher prevalence of some chronic health conditions, such as asthma and allergies, which can have a significant impact on children's quality of life.
To address these and other health concerns, researchers and health care professionals in Liverpool are working to understand more about the health of children in the area and to develop effective strategies for improving their well-being. This may include studies on factors that contribute to childhood obesity and other health problems, as well as programs to improve access to healthy foods, increase physical activity, and provide better health care and support services to children and families.
Ultimately, the goal is to create a healthier and more equitable future for children in Liverpool by promoting health and well-being, reducing health disparities, and supporting families in their efforts to help their children thrive.
Study Design
C-GULL is a prospective, observational cohort study of 10,000 first-born infants and their parents (in triad design), nested within a population-wide, civic data linkage platform.
Study Participants
The study is open to those who are pregnant with their first child, are aged 16 and over and who have booked maternity care at Liverpool Women’s NHS Foundation Trust.
Sample Size
10,000 first-born infants and their parents
Study Duration
As part of this initial phase, the study will collect extensive biological, biometric, socio-demographic and psychosocial information at two time points antenatally (12-16 weeks gestational age and 32-36 weeks gestational age), birth (delivery), and when the child is aged three, 12 and 24 months.
Personal data
Innovative data collection methods will be used to assess areas including child development, neighbourhood and family context, family structure, physical and mental health and the home environment. Furthermore, record linkage will be in place for areas such as health and educational information. Human samples will be collected antenatally and around the time of delivery and stored for future use.
Study Funders
Wellcome Trust is funding this study (Reference: 217067/Z/19/Z) and Professor Louise Kenny is the study Chief Investigator. The study is sponsored by The University of Liverpool and managed by the Harris Wellbeing of Women Research Centre, University of Liverpool.
Research team at site
Welcome to the C-GULL study clinical research team at Liverpool Women's Hospital! We're a dedicated group of professionals who are passionate about improving the health and wellbeing of families in the Liverpool City Region. Our team is made up of skilled research midwives, friendly contact centre staff, knowledgeable study managers, and talented lab technicians.
Our aim is to provide you with the best possible care and support throughout your participation in the study. Our team is always on hand to answer any questions you may have and to help you every step of the way. Whether it's explaining the study in more detail, supporting you taking part in the study or simply just being there for a chat, we're here for you.
So if you have any questions or concerns, don't hesitate to reach out to us. We're here to help and make your experience with the C-GULL study a positive one!
Amy Mahdi
Lead Research Midwife
Wahiba Abdo
Research Midwife
Katie Young
Research Midwife
Irene Reppion
Research Midwife
Michelle Dower
Research Midwife
Caroline Cunningham
Research Midwife
Siobhan Holt
Research Midwife
Sian Rogers
Research Midwife
Hannah Drummond
Research Administrator
Kaitlyn Donoughue
Research Administrator
Beth Taylor
Research Administration
Will Reynolds
Senior Laboratory Technician
Emma Beacom
Laboratory Technician
Nick Rizos
Laboratory Technician
Meron Nuri
Laboratory Technician
Investigators
The C-GULL Investigator Team from the University of Liverpool is made up of experts in the women's and children's health, public health, perinatal psychology, mental health, cardiovascular health, statistics and epidemiology, and biomedical science. These researchers are equipped to lead the way in using the data and samples collected by the study to answer important questions about the health of children and their families. Their extensive expertise ensures that the study is conducted in a safe and reliable manner, with the ultimate goal of improving health outcomes for mothers and their children.
Professor Louise Kenny
Louise is a Consultant Obstetrician as well as the Executive Pro-Vice-Chancellor of the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences at the University of Liverpool and Principal Investigator for the C-GULL study.
Professor David Taylor-Robinson
David is a Professor of Public Health and Policy and MRC Clinician Scientist with expertise in public health, health inequalities, paediatrics and child health, epidemiology and statistics, and evidence synthesis. He is an Honorary Consultant in Public Health at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital.
Professor Iain Buchan
Iain is a public health, informatics and data science research leader. He is Chair in Public Health and Clinical Informatics, and Associate Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Innovation. He pursues data-intensive public health research for major societal challenges, most recently the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and COVID-19 responses.
Professor Sarah Rodgers
Sarah is a Professor of Health Informatics with expertise in evaluating natural experiments and non-randomised intervention studies using anonymised linked administrative and health datasets.
Professor Paula Williamson
Paula is a Professor of Biostatistics. Her research programme has focussed on several aspects of evidence-based medicine (EBM) including clinical trials, meta-analysis, health outcome selection, and reducing waste in research.
Dr Andrew Sharp
Andy is an academic obstetrician with an interest in fetal medicine and complex pregnancies as well as research interests in preterm birth, multiple pregnancy and fetal growth restriction.
Professor Gregory Lip
Gregory is the Price-Evans Chair of Cardiovascular Medicine at the University, NIHR Senior Investigator and consultant cardiologist at the Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital. He specialises in the clinical epidemiology of cardiovascular disease and stroke. He has also been researching improvements in clinical risk stratification and patient care pathways.
Professor Helen Sharp
Helen is Professor of Perinatal and Clinical Child Psychology in the Department of Primary Care and Mental Health. She is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist who jointly leads the Wirral Child Health and Development Study, and leads the Bangalore Child Health and Development Study, which investigate early pre and postnatal risk and protective factors for children's mental health outcomes in UK and India. Her work includes investigating the impact of COVID-19 on mental health.
Professor Michael Beresford
Michael is the Brough Chair, Professor of Child Health at University of Liverpool, and Honorary Paediatric Rheumatology Consultant at Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust. He is Programme Director for Liverpool Health Partner’s ‘Starting Well’ Theme and Director of the UK’s only ‘Experimental Arthritis Treatment Centre for Children’.
Dr Rebecca Geary
Rebecca is an epidemiologist and public health researcher with international experience of conducting research on sexual, reproductive, maternal and mental health, inequalities in health care access, patients’ experiences of health services and the evaluation of complex public health interventions. She has expertise in the analysis of longitudinal and linked administrative and survey data.