School of Medicine, University of Manchester

The School of Medical Sciences stands on Oxford Road in Manchester, the largest medical school in the United Kingdom. It began in 1752 when Charles White founded the Manchester Infirmary. Joseph Jordan opened a School of Anatomy in 1814, and by the late 19th century the faculty had grown into Owens College. The school became co-educational in 1899, admitting its first female graduate, Catherine Chisholm. In 1973 the Stopford Building opened to house pre-clinical teaching for more than 6,000 undergraduates and 3,000 postgraduates. The school’s reputation rests on pioneers who shaped modern medicine. Archibald Vivian Hill won the 1922 Nobel Prize for muscle heat research. Sir John Sulston shared the 2002 Nobel Prize for genetic regulation work. John Charnley revolutionised hip replacement surgery, while Herchel Smith developed oral contraceptives in 1961. Dame Sally Davies served as England’s Chief Medical Officer from 2010 to 2019, and Mumtaz Patel now leads the Royal College of Physicians of London. Visitors find the Stopford Building on Oxford Road, where first- and second-year students attend lectures. Clinical training takes place across four NHS trusts: Manchester Royal Infirmary, Saint Mary’s Hospital, Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, Salford Royal Hospital, Wythenshawe Hospital and Royal Preston Hospital. The medical school library once held the Manchester Medical Society’s collection, founded in 1834, before moving to the university’s main library in 1981.