DrHelen Skirrow

Helen (MBBS, PhD, BSc, MSc, PGCMedEd, DRCOG, MFPH) is a public health medicine doctor and an NIHR Academic Clinical Lecturer specialising in maternal and childhood vaccine uptake in the School of Public Health at Imperial College London. In 2026 she was awarded the international PENTA network Brighter Future Young researcher award for her work on maternal and childhood vaccine uptake.

Helen's research has informed national policy, with findings cited in NICE guidance, the annual Chief Medical Officer's report and UKHSA's immunisation equity audit. Helen has given written and oral expert evidence to the House of Commons Health and Social Care Select Committee enquiry into the first 1000 days on childhood vaccination and appeared on BBC television and radio news and her work featured in the Sunday Times.

Helen's research examines inequalities in vaccination uptake across the life course. Her PhD at Imperial College London, funded by an NIHR Doctoral Research Fellowship, investigated which pregnant women and children do not receive recommended vaccines in the UK and why, including associations between maternal vaccination in pregnancy and childhood MMR uptake. She has also worked on studies assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on maternal and childhood vaccination programmes. She has experience in using large-scale linked mother–child primary care data and co-produced community-based qualitative research.

Helen works closely with public and community partners, including the Mosaic Community Trust in London, to understand barriers and enablers to vaccination among ethnic minority communities living in more deprived areas. 

Helen also leads the Gender Equity Working Group on the School of Public Health’s People and Culture Committee.

Helen trained in medicine at Imperial College London, did foundation training in North-West London hospitals prior to her Public Health MSc. She has since then undertaken public health medicine training placements in local authority public health teams and health protection teams with Public Health England and now the UK Health Security Agency.

AFFILIATIONS

Child Health Unit
Global Digital Health Unit

Centre for Paediatrics and Child Health

Mohn Centre