NURTURE enters into new partnership with University of Nottingham and ARP (Academic Reproductive Partnership) group

Nottingham, UK, 11-6-2014 — /EuropaWire/ — NURTURE, the University of Nottingham’s infertility treatment unit, has entered into a new partnership between the University and the ARP (Academic Reproductive Partnership) group, the largest single provider of assisted conception in the UK. The partnership is part of NURTURE’s plan to further develop its services and move to a new 1300m2 purpose built facility.

Established in 1991 by the University of Nottingham, NURTURE has the highest success rate in the Midlands, with 50% of women under 36 becoming pregnant after treatment and 38% of women aged 36 to 40.

The ARP group, which is backed by Repin, incorporates eight of the UK’s leading infertility treatment centres, including the likes of Oxford IVF unit, Hammersmith (Imperial College) and the Glasgow Centre for Reproductive Medicine. Treatment centres in the ARP group are able to rapidly transfer the latest scientific techniques to their clinics in order to continually improve services and success rates. ARP is also active in Europe, the Middle East and China.

The 25 members of staff at NURTURE have all transferred to the new business and NURTURE’s reproductive medicine specialists, James Hopkisson and Nick Raine-Fenning will become directors of it. Coinciding with the formation of the partnership with the University and ARP, NURTURE has also announced that it will be moving to new premises near junction 25 of the M1 which will enable the clinic to develop and increase its services.

Speaking about the merger with ARP, Nick Raine-Fenning, Clinical Associate Professor of Reproductive Medicine and director of NURTURE, said: “This is great news for NURTURE. Being part of the ARP group means that we will be able to access the very latest research and thinking about infertility treatment and grow the number of treatment cycles we offer whilst further improving on our already very impressive success rates.”

NURTURE is looking towards further growth in the future according to Consultant Gynaecologist and co-director James Hopkisson. “The move to the new premises means that we will be able to significantly expand our facilities. For instance, we are developing a new andrology laboratory which will enhance our treatment for men and further our understanding of male infertility. In addition, being based at junction 25 makes NURTURE more accessible for people right across the midlands, and we believe that we will be able to provide the very best patient experience in the region for NHS and private patients.”

Mike Carr, Director of Business Engagement and Innovation Services at The University of Nottingham, added: “The University has been working very closely with NURTURE to facilitate the investment from Repin and partnership with ARP. This and the move to new premises means that the future for NURTURE looks very bright. Going forward, the business is going to be in a very strong position to grow and provide services for many more people across the Midlands and beyond.”

Dr. Gordon Coutts CEO of ARP said: “We are delighted to be working in partnership with Nurture and the University of Nottingham to provide the very latest fertility treatments to couples in the Nottingham area and East Midlands. This partnership underpins ARP’s unfolding UK strategy by extending our fertility services across the Midlands to complement our existing core business.”

For more information about NURTURE, visit www.nurture.ac.uk

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Photo shows, left to right: James Hopkisson and Nick Raine-Fenning, co-directors of NURTURE at the new premises.

More information is available from Nick King, Marketing Projects Manager, Business Engagement and Innovation Services, University of Nottingham, +44 (0)115 823 2184, or nicholas.king@nottingham.ac.uk

Notes to editors: The University of Nottingham has 42,000 students and is ‘the nearest Britain has to a truly global university, with campuses in China and Malaysia modelled on a headquarters that is among the most attractive in Britain’ (Times Good University Guide 2014). It is also the most popular university in the UK among graduate employers, one of the world’s greenest universities, and winner of the Times Higher Education Award for ‘Outstanding Contribution to Sustainable Development’. It is ranked in the World’s Top 75 universities by the QS World University Rankings.

More than 90 per cent of research at The University of Nottingham is of international quality, according to the most recent Research Assessment Exercise. The University aims to be recognised around the world for its signature contributions, especially in global food security, energy & sustainability, and health. The University won a Queen’s Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education for its research into global food security.

Impact: The Nottingham Campaign, its biggest ever fundraising campaign, will deliver the University’s vision to change lives, tackle global issues and shape the future.

Story credits
For more information about NURTURE, contact Nick Raine-Fenning

Nick King – Marketing Projects Manager, Business Engagement and Innovation Services

Email: nicholas.king@nottingham.ac.uk
Phone: +44 (0)115 823 2184
Location: University of Nottingham Innovation Park

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