The Oxford Mindfulness Centre
is an international centre of excellence within Oxford University’s Department of Psychiatry that works with partners around the world to prevent depression and enhance human potential through the therapeutic use of mindfulness. It has been at the forefront of research and development in the field of mindfulness and has extended its reach to include training and education, clinical services and engagement and advocacy, promoting the benefits of mindfulness globally.

Our current work
The benefits of mindfulness in preventing serious depression and emotional distress have been proven by clinical trials and work continues to explore the implications of this, extending the approach to other disorders, using brain imaging techniques together with experimental cognitive science, to learn how mindfulness has its effects, and which practices are best for whom.
As importantly, mindfulness also works for people who are struggling to keep up with the constant demands of the modern world. We are exploring the potential of mindfulness to help people build resilience at critical periods in their lives: from couples preparing for a new baby, to children and young people at school and college; and from adults in their work and family life, to older adults and those who care for them when they become mentally or physically infirm.
What we have achieved
Our research was instrumental in MBCT becoming a treatment of choice for prevention of recurrent depression in the UK National Health Service.
More recent work has led to major breakthroughs in understanding how mindfulness can reduce suicidality in depression, emotional turbulence in bipolar disorder and serious health anxiety.
Securing the future
The Oxford Mindfulness Centre is committed to ensuring mindfulness can realise its full potential through sustained research and dissemination, training, development and outreach and has launched an ambitious fundraising campaign to secure the future of its work for the benefit of generations to come.








