Sophie Hyndman graduated with a degree in Human Sciences from the University of Oxford, after which she undertook a PhD at Queen Mary College (University of London) on the effects of damp housing on health. She was employed by the Royal College of Nursing as a Research Officer on a study evaluating a quality assurance package for nurses. She then became a Research Associate and Senior Research Associate at the University of Cambridge Health Services Research Group.

Here, she worked on a number of studies examining aspects of health and the health services, including work on asthma. She then helped to set up the Oxford Research Development Support Group in 1997 and remained as Co-ordinator of the various incarnations of this group until the end of 2008. Sophie now works for the Research Design Service – South Central as a part-time Research Advisor, based at the HSRU at the Department of Public Health.