Oxford and Thames Valley Network awarded excellence status
16 May 2025
Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (OUH), alongside the Thames Valley Neuro-Oncology Network, has been named as a Tessa Jowell Centre of Excellence for a second consecutive term.
The status, awarded by the Tessa Jowell Brain Cancer Mission (TJBCM), was formally presented to the brain tumour service at an awards ceremony in London (Thursday 15 May 2025). The honour, first given to the Trust in 2022, lasts for three years.
In addition to OUH, the Thames Valley Neuro-Oncology Network, set up in 2001, includes Royal Berkshire Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust, Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust, and NHS Frimley Health Foundation Trust.
The Trust and Network were recognised for the excellent treatment, care and research they provide to patients with a brain tumour, following a rigorous review process led by a committee of NHS and patient experts.
The centre was celebrated for:
- comprehensive joint care arrangements across a complex network;
- a highly innovative surgery service, with extensive use of novel technology;
- well-resourced chemotherapy provision;
- outstanding approach to screening patients’ psychological needs;
- strong collaborations with local services;
- an extensive programme of clinical trials and pre-clinical research.
Professor Puneet Plaha, Consultant Neuro-Oncology Surgeon and Lead of OUH Neuro-Oncology and the Thames Valley Neuro-Oncology Network, said: "We are honoured to receive this recognition once again. It reflects the extraordinary collaboration across our network, the dedication of our clinical teams, and our commitment to pushing the boundaries of neuro-oncology care and research.
"Being named a Tessa Jowell Centre of Excellence affirms that patients across the Thames Valley are receiving not only the best in treatment and support, but also access to cutting-edge innovations and clinical trials that are shaping the future of brain tumour care."
Felicity Taylor-Drewe, Chief Operating Officer at OUH, said: "We are delighted, alongside our partner organisations, to be named as a Tessa Jowell Centre of Excellence for a second time. This recognition assures brain tumour patients that they are receiving the highest level of NHS care.
"This prestigious status underscores the dedication and excellence of our highly skilled multidisciplinary teams, who continuously strive for learning and delivering the best possible patient-centred care."
The TJBCM is a legacy of the late Baroness Tessa Jowell, who gave a speech in the House of Lords in 2018 championing the need to improve brain tumour treatment, care, and survival for all patients, regardless of where they live.
The brain tumour service at OUH and its network hospitals provides patients with the best expertise and latest technology for surgery, analysis of tumour tissue, stereotactic radio-surgery radiotherapy, and chemotherapy
OUH and the network is one of 14 centres of excellence in England and Wales.
Professor Ros Quinlivan, who led the review process, said: "Having led similar initiatives in other disease areas, I was struck by the level of commitment and compassion in all the teams who took part in the Centre of Excellence initiative, with innovative examples of treatment and care present in every centre.
"The most exciting part of this process is the work, already underway, to share these exceptional practices and drive forward national collaboration on key challenges."
Brain tumours affect over 11,000 adults in the UK every year and kill more people under the age of 40 than any other cancer:
