Meet the Innovation Agency team

Gideon Ben-Tovim OBE is the chair of the Innovation Agency.

He also chairs Nature Connected, the Liverpool City Region Local Nature Partnership.

He is honorary adviser on the natural environment to the Liverpool City Region metro mayor Steve Rotheram and chairs the Liverpool City Region Year of the Environment Steering Group.

Gideon is a former Reader in Sociology at the University of Liverpool where he has lectured, researched and published books and articles about race and ethnic relations. 

He was previously the chair of Liverpool NHS Primary Care Trust and of NHS Merseyside.

Gideon is a former Liverpool city councillor for the multi-racial Granby (Princes Park) Ward, and has served as chair of the Education Committee and leader of the opposition.

He currently chairs the Management Committee of Granby Sure Start Early Years Centre within Kingsley Primary School where is the emeritus chair. He is Local Public Sector Director of the Liverpool and Sefton Health Partnership (Liftco).

Gideon has been awarded an OBE for services to health, and has been made an honorary alderman of Liverpool City Council.

After graduating in Economics and Administration from Bath University in 1973, Bruce has spent most of his career in the healthcare sector.

He began working in a variety of corporate marketing and strategic roles for the Dickinson Robinson Group, before managing two of their medical devices divisions.

In 1987, Bruce relocated from Bristol to Lancashire and joined Vernon Carus Ltd as an executive director. He was appointed managing director there in 1990 until the company was acquired in 2008. Bruce was also chairman of a number of subsidiary companies including two international businesses. Whilst at Vernon Carus, he had a non-executive position with Celltran a start-up cell therapy business in Sheffield.

During this period, Bruce was also on the Executive Council of the Medical Device Industry Association (ABHI) as well as chairing other sector trade associations both in the UK and Europe.

For the past five years, Bruce has been acting as an advisor for ABHI and also serves as chair of its Industry Code of Practice Compliance Panel.

Bruce has also held various advisory and non-executive positions both in the private and public sectors including deputy chair of the NHS Technology Adoption Centre (NTAC) and chair of Medilink North West.

Bruce joined the Innovation Agency and took on the role of vice chair in June 2014.

Dr Phil Jennings is the Chief Executive of the Innovation Agency, the AHSN for the North West Coast. He also continues to practise as a GP and has a specialist interest in cardiology.

On behalf of the AHSN Network, Phil has two roles; as the lead on the Accelerated Access Collaborative (AAC) Rapid Uptake Products Programme, which fast-tracks products which have been proved to significantly improve care; and as the lead for the AAC’s Innovation for Healthcare Inequalities Programme.

Phil’s previous roles include the Primary Care Lead for the Cheshire and Merseyside Cardiac Network; Chairman of NHS Wirral Clinical Commissioning Group; and deputy medical director at NHS England and NHS Improvement North West.

Phil’s podcasts about the Rapid Uptake Products can be heard here.

Caroline Kenyon is a former print and broadcast journalist, PR consultant and NHS trust head of communications. 

She has provided PR and marketing consultancy services for numerous NHS organisations, regeneration bodies and businesses and has delivered media training and crisis PR support for organisations around the country, particularly in the NHS.

Her early career was in journalism, working for regional and national press; BBC local radio in Nottingham and Lancashire; Radio 4 magazine programmes; and Border TV. She was also an interim lecturer in broadcast journalism at the University of Central Lancashire.

Caroline holds a Diploma in Professional Marketing with the Chartered Institute of Marketing.

Tony is responsible for operational management, programme reporting and the digital programme within the Innovation Agency, working closely with wider system partners.

He has more than 30 years' experience in the NHS, in information management and transformational change roles. Before joining the Innovation Agency Tony worked as Director of Strategy and Performance at NHS Knowsley CCG. He played a key role in the development of the Healthy Liverpool Programme as Programme Director for the Community and Digital Transformation Programmes.

He has played a lead role in partnership working within the local health and care systems including joint commissioning with local authorities; Liverpool City Region Local Enterprise Partnership, NWC CLAHRC and was previously a member of the Innovation Agency Partnership Board.

Carole Spencer leads on our strategy for the spread and adoption of innovations and for the local support we offer to our health and care systems.

She works with the Lancashire and South Cumbria ICS and the Cheshire and Merseyside ICS to support them with priority workstreams to ensure that innovative products, practices and services are known to NHS partners and introduced for patient benefit. She works with colleagues across the AHSN Network to ensure effective knowledge exchange.

Carole started her career in the banking and finance sector, working in the City of London as a commercial analyst before moving into a management consultancy.  She has more than 25 years of NHS experience, with provider trusts, commissioners and in regional and regulatory roles.

She has significant experience in the planning and management of large scale change as Strategic Development Director of several large acute NHS providers across the North West, and is committed to the development of collaborative systems strategies within the NHS.

Carole was instrumental in establishing pathfinder hospital groups in Manchester, in the development of a single pathology service for Lancashire and South Cumbria. She is currently working with NWC People Boards and Health Education England to develop a new supply route into the NHS for graduate psychologists to train as an associate psychological practitioner in order to deal with significant workforce gaps in that area.

Andrew has over 25 years’ experience in the NHS, starting as a registered nurse, specialising in community care and more recently as a senior manager in commissioning, working across health and social care sectors.

His role at the Innovation Agency includes responsibility for delivering improvement programmes commissioned by NHS England and Improvement – in maternity and neonatal care; in early identification of patient deterioration in all care settings; in mental health; in medicines safety; and adoption and spread of innovations.

As well as his Honours degree in nursing, Andrew also holds postgraduate qualifications in management and a diploma in Leadership for Quality Improvement. He has also achieved a distinction for a Health Executive MBA.

As Associate Director for Digital Change,Jenni's role involves understanding the digital strategies across Cheshire and Mersey and Lancashire and South Cumbria and trying to support their agendas then  linking them into national work.

Jenni has been supporting the ICS and HCP in Share2Care, our Local Health Care Record Exemplar, and the Empower the Person work stream in the development of Personal Health Records (PHRs). She also supports our SMEs by guiding them in what it means to be NHS/Social Care ready.

Having worked in the NHS for over 15 years as a Pharmacy Technician, she then moving in to Health Informatics working with iSOFT to design and implement their Pharmacy Stock control system for the UK&I, as well as working for NHS North West on the National Programme for IT as Business Change and Benefits lead, Across Lancashire on various projects from step up step down bed management systems to the implementation of the Health Information Exchange and more recently at NHS Digital as Engagement Lead for NHS login and PHRs.

Adrian is part of the Innovation Agency digital team, supporting delivery of North West Coast digital change strategy and programmes to transform and connect health and social care, with a focus on adult social care, the regulated care sector and Technology Enabled Care (TEC).

His work with Healthier Lancashire South Cumbria and Cheshire and Merseyside Health and Care Partnership has focused on empowering both people with care and support needs and adult social care staff through digital solutions.

Adrian is currently engaged in local delivery of NHSX’s Digitising Social Care Programme in support of the DHSC adult social care reform white paper.  He is also working with the North West Association of Directors of Adult Social Services to develop a strategic approach to digital and TEC across adult social care in the North West.

Adrian has more than 20 years’ experience across a variety of roles in social care, housing and the community and voluntary sector.  His work has centred on transformation, commissioning, engagement, communications, policy, partnerships, co-production, service re-design, innovation, and integration.

He holds an LLB (Hons), an MBA and PG Certs in both Leadership and Digital Health.

Anthony provides direct support to the Chief Executive and Executive Team across a range of corporate business functions and leads the co-ordination of corporate projects.  He provides secretariat to the Board and the Finance, Performance and Strategy Committee to ensure the Innovation Agency meets its obligations. 

Anthony’s 12-year career with the NHS has predominately focussed on providing executive support to Board Chairs and Chief Executives across a number of NHS organisations. He was previously the Corporate Affairs Manager at North West NHS Commissioning Support Unit (CSU).

Prior to Anthony’s NHS career, he worked within marketing as a Client Services Manager working with various national companies including Cadbury, Unilever, Liverpool Football Club and the MBNA Corporation.

Anthony is current studying his Company Secretarial and Share Registration Practice certificate with the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ICSA).

Allison provides direct support to the CEO, Chair, and NEDs. Allison is the lead for HR, corporate and admin functions at our Daresbury office. 

 Allison previously supporting the senior management of RLBUHT and Wirral CCG. Prior to her NHS career, Allison worked for the banking sector providing financial services to the public.

Kerrin  provides assurance and monitoring of projects and programmes for spread and adoption of innovations, including planning and delivery of various initiatives and support communities of practice and our wide network of partners.

He manages the Innovation Agency CRM and project management systems, and  also provide processes and reporting documentations, risk registers and assurance reports for stakeholders.

Kerrin has worked for the NHS since 1999 across a number of roles, in  different NHS organisations, in many different locations from Manchester to Uganda.  He has worked on various programme and project management, implementing databases for staff, analysing data for cleansing and costs saving purposes, managing teams and mentoring colleagues. 

Sarah currently assists the administration team booking meetings, travel and accommodation for staff and assists both the transformation and patient safety team by providing support in event coordination.

 She joined the Innovation Agency in November 2018. Sarah Previously worked in the charity sector for an organisation called the Dyslexia Foundation where is gained her NVQ Level 2 and 3 in Business Administration.

Sarah then went on to work for Alder Hey Children’s hospital as a Health Records Clerk for two years before joining us.

She hopes to further her studies and progress with the Innovation Agency.

Mike Kenny is currently the Chair of the AHSN Network Commercial Directors Forum, which brings together all 15 AHSN commercial directors to share knowledge and co-ordinate national commercial activities.

Mike has a wealth of knowledge and experience of customer relationship management and a successful track record of partnership and collaboration with NHS providers and commissioners in the North West Coast.

He uses his relationship management experience to bring innovations into the North West Coast through engagement with industry, pharmaceutical companies, Local Enterprise Partnerships,  innovation hubs, NHS, academia, local authorities and small to medium enterprises.

He previously spent more than 20 years in the pharmaceutical industry in a variety of commercial, partnership and leadership roles in the North West and North East of England and Yorkshire. Mike studied genetics and microbiology at Lancaster University, one of the Innovation Agency’s academic and business partners.

Lindsay Sharples has a strong track record of supporting innovation in health and care and securing funding to introduce innovations to the NHS from around the world.

She is responsible for the Innovation Agency’s three ERDF funded business support programmes – in Cheshire and Warrington; Liverpool City Region; and Lancashire. She also heads a team of international programme managers who work with overseas business and research bodies such as EIT Health, on funded programmes to bring cutting edge innovations to the NHS.

Her focus is to develop successful partnerships with academia, research institutions, NHS providers, local authorities and private sector partners to maximise opportunities for economic growth in the North West Coast, supported by local, national and international funding.

Colin is Head of the Innovation Agency’s international programmes including EIT Health Bridgehead Europe and Global programmes, providing market access support to best in class international innovators, start-ups and scale-ups in both the UK and US markets.

Colin has extensive experience with innovation, technology adoption and service transformation to enable innovation in healthcare. He specialises in technology adoption and market access strategy development and implementation. Colin has extensive experience creating and implementing strategies to support the introduction of innovative medical technologies in a wide range of clinical settings and has a track record in developing partnerships with diverse key opinion leaders and stakeholders at local, national and international level.

Phil is responsible for the development of the HealthTec Cluster, funded under a joint partnership between the Science and Technology Facilities Council (part of UK Research and Innovation) and the Innovation Agency.

Previously, Phil worked for three years for King’s Health Partners in London across 22 Clinical Academic Groups specialising in research analytics. During this time he undertook his PhD and an MSc at Kings College London in Aerospace Physiology at the Centre of Human and Applied Physiological Sciences, focused on evaluating an astronaut health countermeasure for the European Space Agency.

Earlier, he worked for Nuffield Health after undertaking a BSc and MSc in exercise science from the University of Chichester.

A firm believer in promoting diversity, inclusion and equality in life sciences, he is also a trustee for the LGBT+ charitable trust ‘Pride in STEM’.

Andy works with partners at Liverpool John Moores University and Liverpool City Region Growth Company to support LCR SME develop innovative healthcare solutions for the NHS and social care market.

Andy has worked in the public and private sector and has worked on multi million pound programmes ranging from Carbon Management programme to Building Schools for the Future to a Greater Manchester PACS Picture Archiving and Communications System.

Steve works with partners at Lancaster University and Lancashire County Council to support Lancashire SMEs develop innovative healthcare solutions for the NHS.

Steve has a clinical background plus more than 15 years’ experience in sales and marketing in the medical device industry. Before joining the Innovation Agency he spent several years as a healthcare consultant to the NHS.

Indi works with partners across Cheshire and Warrington, including Cheshire and Warrington Growth Hub and Health Innovation Manchester, to support SMEs to develop innovative healthcare solutions for the NHS.

Having worked as Assistant Director of Finance at NHS Manchester, Indi was responsible for delivering efficiency savings and has also held consultancy posts in various NHS organisations focusing on finance, transformation and efficiency.   A Chartered Accountant, Indi has worked in corporate finance supporting SMEs with funding and business advice, and with large entrepreneurial businesses in a range of sectors.

Laura leads our innovation pipeline programme which progresses and tracks innovation with the greatest potential impact to improve health and care.

She works closely with our industry partners across the North West to develop insight and understand the impact of their innovations on health outcomes, and to support them in closing gaps in evidence and value demonstration so they are ready for adoption and spread.

Laura works with a range of NHS, academic and commercial organisations to collaborate on real world validations and other innovation insight programmes, for example working with the NWC ARC and NW Neonatal ODN on the NIPP programme to evaluate the impact of early, supported transfer home for neonates.

Prior to joining the Innovation Agency in 2018 she spent 15 years working in the pharmaceutical industry, most recently as a market access specialist launching transformational products, and previously in business development.

Laura holds a B.Sc Biology and an M.Sc Economic Evaluation in Healthcare.

Kevin Moreton joined the Innovation Agency’s Commercial Team in August 2020 to work on the EIT Bridgehead Programme and other international programmes.

He brings with him over 10 years’ experience of working on a wide range of NHS-related projects having previously been employed by both the NHS Technology Adoption Centre (NTAC) and TRUSTECH. 

During his time at NTAC, Kevin was responsible for managing the Showcase Hospitals Programme and other related healthcare-associated infections initiatives such as The Design Bugs Out. He helped NTAC to develop its commercial offer for industry and was responsible for supporting companies to access the NHS market, as well as writing many Department of Health commissioned reports and contributing to NICE guidance documents.

At TRUSTECH, Kevin supported Health Innovation Manchester programmes such as The Innovation NEXUS, The Regional Digital Health Accelerator Programme and STEP Into Healthcare. During this time he developed a strong understanding of the work of the Academic Health Science Network’s programmes and initiatives.

He also assisted with the delivery of the Manchester Growth Hubs Life Science Sectors programme, supporting a wide range of SMEs in their attempts to develop and sell products to the NHS.

Now Kevin will help our supported companies to identify and engage with key NHS contacts and navigate the UK NHS landscape.

Haku is the first joint appointment between the Innovation Agency and Liverpool Health Partners (LHP).

Working on the innovation insight programme, his role is to ensure alignment of activities with LHP programmes and maximize the opportunity to coordinate the Innovation Agency’s processes and operational structures to support the ongoing adoption and spread of products. A key priority is to nurture a culture of innovation, to promote and support entrepreneurship and achieve a system-wide approach to innovation for patient benefit.

Having spent over 18 years in the pharmaceutical industry in a variety of commercial and market access leadership roles, Haku’s relevant expertise includes developing novel value propositions/value-based solutions across healthcare systems, and in-depth knowledge of product lifecycle management, including measurement of product adoption and implementation. This background will help develop innovative ideas and concepts into outputs and products which will improve the health of the local population and health service outcomes.

Ann supports the International Progamme Manager with project management input to the European Horizon 2020 Projects including Ritmocore, Product/Market Fit, Stop & Go and ENSAFE.

Previously, she worked on significant European Projects for many years at Liverpool John Moores University including Digital Academy, Open Labs and Sensor City.  More recently she worked on a European Project at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital. 

Paul’s role in the Innovation Agency is to help to get data into the organisation and to support the pipeline development.

Paul has previously worked for the Patient Safety & Care Team working on local and national programmes, including Connected Health Cities, Maternity & Neonatal Safety Improvement Programme and Care Home improvement programme, amongst others.

Paul is  a Prince2 and Agile certified Project Manager and developed his Project Management skills whilst working in IT Support and capacity management environments within other local and national public service organisations.

His IT and data analysis skills are key to his project management style.

Tracy ensures compliance of the Cheshire and Warrington Health MATTERS project which is in receipt of grant money through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). 

She is also involved in promoting best practice across all three current ERDF projects and working on guidelines and procedures for the three new Health MATTERS business support projects that will commence later this year.

Tracy has a wealth of experience having worked in grant funded programmes across the North West for 11 years. She was claims and monitoring manager for the £32m regional Growth Fund project at Lancaster University and went on to manage the project support unit there, looking after a portfolio of 12 ERDF and local growth fund projects.  She also has 13 years’ experience in environmental toxicology contract research and development.

Elaine brings to the team a broad knowledge of innovation pathways across therapeutics and healthcare technologies, a strong background in marketing and an extensive network. Elaine was a Life Sciences Specialist for Inward Investment at the UK’s Department for International Trade and prior to that, she led the Biomedical Catalyst at Innovate UK. Elaine has 27 years of experience in commercial and licensing/M&A roles, including as Chair of the UK Pharmaceutical Licensing Group and as a board member of Europharm SMC. Elaine has a PhD, an MBA and a Diploma in Marketing.

David manages the administrative systems for Lancashire including ensuring projects are compliant with ERDF regulations and run to budget.

He has more than eight years working in the NHS, including Primary Care Support Service in Preston, as a booking clerk in Radiology at East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, and as the MDT coordinator to Head and Neck and Haematology Cancers at the same Trust.

Louise is the project manager for the NHS Insights Prioritisation Programme project, working with the Applied Research Collaboration for the North West Coast (ARC NWC) to evaluate early supported discharge models in neonatal care.

She previously worked on the Innovation Agency’s international programmes, supporting delivery of EIT Health’s Bridgehead Europe and Bridgehead Global programmes. She has also worked on the Cheshire & Warrington and Liverpool City Region ERDF projects.

Louise has experience of transformational change and prior to joining the Innovation Agency she worked on the delivery and implementation of the government’s welfare reform agenda at the Department for Work and Pensions.

Louise is Prince2 Foundation and MSP Foundation certified.

Omobolanle joined the Innovation Agency in March 2022 as a Project Support Officer in the Enterprise and Growth team working on the NHS Insights Prioritisation Programme project focusing on early supported discharge models in neonatal care. She also provides support for the innovation pipeline programme and innovation insight projects.  She is passionate about projects that have potential to improve human health.

Previously Omobolanle worked at the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control as a Senior Scientific Officer in the One Health/International Health Regulations division. She also worked as a research assistant at Obafemi Awolowo University on a mother-to-child transmission of HIV project. She holds a bachelor’s degree (2010, First Class Honours, Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria) and MSc in Control of Infectious Diseases (2012, Royal Veterinary College, University of London).

Debbie has a background in Citizenship and Participation and previously worked for Wigan Council as Citizenship Lead and NW Co-ordinator for National Healthy Schools Status leading a large team and 143 schools to achieve ‘Healthy School Status’. She formed the joint schools’ Councils for both Primary and Secondary schools, ‘Little Voices’ and ‘Comunik8’ making real changes in schools and education.  Before joining the Innovation Agency, Debbie worked in the private sector on contract to the Department of Work and Pensions where work included both staff and customer forums.  She is passionate about people having a say in what affects them and making a difference and believes ‘Every Voice Matters’. 

Holding a teaching qualification and degree she has taught IT in the community and is a volunteer bereavement support worker for her local hospice.

David has a background in support and guidance, over the last 11 years he has worked with members of the public within employment and engagement settings as a subcontractor to the Department of Work & Pensions.

David is experienced in building customer groups, developing questionnaires and gaining un-influenced customer feedback within a variety of settings.

Mandy is a biomedical scientist and started as a Junior B, rotating around all departments before specialising in biochemistry. She worked in pathology for a number of years before moving into improvement work in the late 1990s.

Mandy has been on secondment to the National Testing Cell and DHSC for the duration of the pandemic, working in the Operational Supplies team as Deputy Director to build testing capacity and deploy a number of new technologies at pace.

Mandy is lead for the North West Coast Patient Safety Collaborative and is returning to the Innovation Agency to her role as Patient Safety Lead.

Mandy also leads a number of local projects to deliver improvements in patient safety through the spread of innovations, both technologies and processes, and provides leadership for our medicines optimisation work.

Her role involves her in the range of healthcare systems from primary and community via emergency, to acute, mental health and tertiary services, with a focus on the impact of culture on team and organisational success.

For 15 years before joining the Innovation Agency Mandy worked mainly in Wales, with Wales Audit Office, Healthcare Inspection Wales and Inspection Wales and Welsh Ambulance Service NHS Trust.

As well as her honours degree and Master’s, Mandy is a Fellow of the Institute of Biomedical Science, member of the Institute of Healthcare Managers and British Computer Society, and Affiliate of the Governance Institute: ICSA.

Michelle works with the Atrial Fibrillation (AF) team at the Innovation Agency, providing Quality Improvement support for the AF Collaborative which helps CCGs and primary care to detect people with AF and improve their management.

Prior to supporting the AF team, Michelle worked on alcohol awareness and evidence into practice projects at the Innovation Agency.

Before joining the Innovation Agency, Michelle worked with the CLAHRC for Greater Manchester for six years as a programme manager, working on quality improvement and service improvement projects, across several cardiovascular diseases and also mental health. She was also involved in running Quality Improvement Collaboratives in primary care and implementing new services for people with pre-diabetes and mental health problems.

Michelle also worked in the pharmaceutical Industry for 11 years, supporting medical education and market access activities, in both commercial and editorial roles.

Katie is Head of Programmes - Patient Safety within the Patient Safety and Care Improvement Team and has operational responsibility for the delivery of the NHSI commissioned national patient safety improvement priorities (NatPatSIPs) which are a key component of the Patient Safety Strategy. 

With over 25 years' experience in the NHS, Katie’s expertise as a clinician (health care assistant to matron, specialising in critical care, the acutely unwell adult and Sepsis) and knowledge of the health and social care system, provides an appreciation and understanding of the patient journey, processes and pathways of care and system redesign. 

Katie is a registered nurse, has an MSc in Quality and Patient Safety Improvement and is an Advanced Quality Improvement Practitioner and Human Factors Instructor.

Alice is a Programme Manager for the Patient Safety Team supporting the delivery of the Mental Health Safety Improvement Programme (MHSIP).

The loval delivery of MHSIP, which Alice will play a key role in, will focus on meeting the ambitions of the MHSIP to nationally reduce the incidence of restrictive practice by 25 per cent  in all inpatient mental health, learning disabilities and autism wards engaged in the programme by April 2023.

We are aiming to directly support at least 10 per cent of wards in each of our NHS mental health, learning disabilities and autism trusts to use the restrictive practice change package by testing and implementing interventions.

Alice holds a BSc in Psychology, an MSc in Transforming Health and Social Care and is working towards a PhD in Mental Health research.

Amanda is a programme manager for the patient safety team and supports the delivery of the Matneo SIP workstream.

Amanda is a registered nurse and midwife who has experience within quality improvement and governance. 

Amanda is currently participating in the Each Baby Counts learn and support national project as a local development lead. This work has included the co-design and testing of new approaches to promote positive and supportive workplace practices around clinical escalation of care.

Gemma has previously worked as an audiologist for the NHS in Rochdale and Leeds before working in the commercial sector for a hearing aid manufacturer as a product trainer and product marketing manager. Her role involved helping clinicians improve the patient experience when providing new technologies such as hearing aids to patients. She also helped support product launches across a number of European countries.

Gemma then went on to work in the area of infection control, developing and marketing products to the NHS and distributors. She has regulatory experience in medical devices, cosmetics and biocides.

Rebecca is a Programme Manager in the Patient Safety and Care Improvement Team and supports the delivery of the Managing Deterioration Safety Improvement Programme.

Rebecca has an extensive background in delivering projects, change and implementations across a variety of sectors and industries, including time spent working on global transformation initiatives.

Rebecca holds a BSc in a life sciences discipline as well as Prince2 Practitioner status.

Rhiannon is a Programme Manager in the Patient Safety and Care Improvement Team working on the spread and adoption of products covered by the MedTech Funding Mandate (MTFM) and Rapid Uptake Products (RUP) programmes.

Rhiannon previously managed the Liverpool Bio-Innovation Hub biobank, based in the University of Liverpool, for 10 years.

The biobank was partly funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), with the aim of helping SMEs access high-quality biosamples and data.

Before this, her background was in laboratory-based health research, having worked both in the research labs at LHCH and then the Institute of Translational Medicine in the University of Liverpool.

Rosie is a registered occupational therapist who retrained as an allied health professional after 10 years in the marketing and communications industry. Following a period managing clinical trials in respiratory medicine, Rosie completed her PhD in Health Services Research, supported by the Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care (CLAHRC), and currently manages the lipids workstream.

The Innovation Agency provides the opportunity to bring together her experience across industry, academia and healthcare.

Michael is a Project Manager in the patient safety team working on the cardiovascular disease (CVD) and lipid management programme. This involves working alongside NHS colleagues throughout the North West Coast to support the implementation of various pilots for the better management of cardiovascular diseases.

Prior to joining the Innovation Agency Michael worked as a project manager for St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, designing and implementing an HR system that was rolled out across the North West.

Kelly Smyth recently joined the Innovation Agency as a Project Manager in the Patient Safety and Care Improvement team, working on respiratory projects across Cheshire and Merseyside, and Lancashire and South Cumbria.

Before joining the Innovation Agency, Kelly worked at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine within programme management teams focusing on Neglected Tropical Diseases and Lung Health projects.

She has an MSc in Health, Exercise and Nutrition and a BSc in Health and Psychology. She is also Prince 2 qualified and is currently completing the APM Project Management Qualification.

Theun is a Project Manager in the Patient Safety and Care Improvement Team working on the cardiovascular disease (CVD) programme. At the Innovation Agency, his projects involve supporting primary care networks with the roll out of the BP@home Programme. This work is aligned with the UCLP Proactive Care Framework for managing high blood pressure and cardiovascular risk.

Theun previously worked at the University of Liverpool where he managed various (international) projects across a number of Departments including a biobank. At the biobank he was responsible for RD&I and quality control procedures as well as co-ordinating collaborative projects both within the university and with external partners. Theun has a PhD in Clinical Engineering from the University of Liverpool.

Patricia Makoni, a recent graduate of the University of York specialising in Environmental Economics, joined the Innovation Agency in January 2022. As part of her studies Patricia worked as a Project Officer for the World Health Organization, expeirence which enhanced her ability to work in teams and stimulate innovations.

Since 2019 she played a part in a variety of team activities and led the University of York’s international student's department.

Passionate about research and data as a tool for decision making, Patricia will be working as a Digital Support Project Officer working on the BP@home project. In her free time Patricia enjoys baking and cooking .

Lauren provides all aspects of support to the Patient Safety & Care Improvement team while completing a Higher Level Apprenticeship. She joined the Innovation Agency is 2017 and has previously worked in the events and corporate support teams.

Harley is an experienced Project Manager with strong project management skills. Harley considers himself to have exceptional organisational and planning skills working with various teams to achieve set task and objectives. Well-versed in MS office suite- MS project, MS Word, MS Excel and other project management tools, Harley has been able to harness various project management methodologies and frameworks which include Lean Thinking, Agile methodologies and other concepts to ensure the smooth achievements of corporate objectives. Harley’s background and experience working in the private sector over the years in various industries which include, IT, Transport, SMEs has made his focus on successful implementation of projects a driving force.

Harley loves running and long distance walk and Harley uses his musical skills as a soothing therapy to re-energize his wellbeing.

Contact Greg if you have any queries about the communications portfolio, including public relations, social or traditional media or presentations.

Greg started his career in journalism and worked for regional newspaper titles in the Midlands and in the North West for around 12 years, and was latterly based in Manchester where he was responsible for several regional editions of the free ‘commuter newspaper’ Metro.

He moved into public relations in the early 2000s when he joined the Ministry of Defence in Liverpool where he was responsible for public relations for the Royal Navy, Army and RAF in the North West. This was an often turbulent period for the MoD as the UK military became involved in the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Greg moved into NHS communications in 2013 when he became a freelance communications consultant. He was appointed to oversee communications for the Greater Manchester partner in the national Cancer Vanguard, a programme that piloted new approaches to cancer services.

Helen has responsibility for enhancing the reputation of the Innovation Agency by co-ordinating and delivering a busy calendar of events which will support not only a diverse programme of work with colleagues internally but our wider collaboration with partners both locally and nationally on joint events.

She leads on designing events and deciding on the best approach to deliver numerous projects and events running concurrently.

Helen has over 20 years’ experience in event management and most recently worked as the event and marketing manager for life science membership organisation Bionow for 15 years.

Debbie Rigby has more than 10 years’ experience in the NHS, having worked in a specialist mental health trust and more recently in a clinical commissioning group. During this time, she has expanded her knowledge on new and innovative ways of delivering communications.

Debbie supports the wide range of programmes delivered by the Innovation Agency by creating communications resources in collaboration with colleagues internally and in partner organisations.

She has a keen interest in digital communications including social media platforms and web content. 

Philip provides day-to-day support to the Communications and Events teams,  communicating with internal and external stakeholders, including event logistics.

He is a qualified journalist and has over five-years of experience working in communications and events with England Squash, the national governing body for the sport. He has expertise in engagement, participation, relationship building and events management.

Alison has extensive experience organising a range of events including corporate awards, workshops and conferences – on line and in person. She is a key member of the team delivering the North West Coast Research and Innovation Awards, a collaboration with NIHR ARC North West Coast and NIHR CRN North West Coast.

She was previously responsible for organising the NHS in the North Excellence in Supply Awards and her background is in events and projects in both the public and private sector.

As Associate Director for Transformation within the Innovation Agency, Eleanor has a key focus on building collaboration and spread of evidenced-based innovation and emerging models of care across the Lancashire and South Cumbria footprint.

Within the team, Eleanor takes the strategic lead for Active and Healthy Ageing. She also leads the Prevention and Population Health agenda for Healthier Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care System.

Eleanor is a qualified consultant in public health, having trained in the North West, and has extensive experience of working within both the provider and commissioning arms of the NHS, local authority and  academia, in the UK and overseas and also at regional and national levels.

She also has a special interest in European public health, having previously held the UK Chair of the European Network of Medical Residents in Public Health, and acted as the strategic lead in developing national guidance and policies for independent schools across the UK around vaccination and immunisation.

Charlotte’s role is to lead a programme that focuses on the workforce benefits of innovation, pathway transformation and staff wellbeing.

Charlotte has a degree in Biomedical Science as well as qualifications in coaching and cognitive behavioural therapy.

She has a background in health education and behaviour change working in the charity sector and is an experienced programme and events manager.

Ed focusses upon building and holding strategic partnerships across our footprint to support the spread of innovation at a system level.

Ed collaborates with transformation programme directors, clinical networks and regional leads to understand priorities and identify opportunities for innovation spread, promoting innovation at the design phase of service change.

Jen Kohan is an educator and instructional specialist with a passion for connected, experiential learning, and design thinking.

 After twenty years in the American public education system as a teacher, cognitive coach, and equity program coordinator, she currently serves the Innovation Agency as Head of the Coaching Academy. Her work is grounded in reflective-practice, evidence-based improvement, and collaborative principles.

She holds a BA (Hons) in English and an MA (Hons) in Humanities, Qualified Teacher Status, and is trained in intercultural competencies, online learning, cognitive coaching, and implementation science.

Jen believes that a coach best serves individuals and teams through guided thinking structures related to specific needs and goals, as determined by participant stakeholders.

Lindsey is part of our Improvement and Education Team, designing and delivering programmes through our Coaching Academy. She previously worked at NHS England in Lancashire and South Cumbria as part of the prevention and population health team; and delivering the digital strategy in the Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care System.

She has a wealth of experience in managing programmes and is skilled in organisational development, as a facilitator, a Myers Briggs practitioner, a coach, a Neuro Linguistic Practitioner and a Lean and Aston Team Leader Development advisor.  

Her earlier career was in both acute and primary care settings and earlier worked in human resources and training, delivering a number of national projects.

Wendy is an experienced team coach, qualified in Aston methodology; and a qualified personal coach. She has trained in human factors; project management; Quality Improvement and LEAN methodology; emotional intelligence coaching and leadership methods using neuro linguistic programming; and more recently Team Time with the Point of Care Foundation.

Since taking a BA (hons) in clinical leadership and MSc in healthcare leadership she has specialised in organisational development and effectiveness. Wendy’s previous roles have been in community and general practice nursing, management, improvement and commissioning.

More recently she has worked in the prison sector helping to embed restorative approaches through trauma informed care and team based working. She has also worked closely with local community health providers Mersey Care on their Restorative Just and learning Culture programme.

Wendy’s passion is restorative practice and team coaching, blending cultural values-based approaches that improve psychological safety with quality improvement methods, which ultimately create the conditions for innovation in practice.

Gemma is a programme manager with a varied background in the health and care sector and a passion for helping people through transformation and innovation.

Gemma studied BSc Psychology before working in private and public sectors in the field of addictions rehabilitation and other NHS mental health community and inpatient settings. She later completed an MSc Cognitive Brain Imaging and PhD Psychology.

Gemma began her career in the life sciences industry while working in the medical communications field. She worked with pharmaceutical partners in a variety of therapy areas including virology, immunology, respiratory, and neurology. She then joined the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in the Technology Appraisals programme, and later worked in the transformation team, leading implementation and benefits management in the Centre for Health Technology Evaluation.

Gemma recently completed her Level 5 ILM Operations / Department Manager qualification, and APMG Change Management Foundation and Practitioner.

Karen is the Communications Manager for the Coaching Academy, currently on maternity leave until autumn 2023.

Originally from Canada but calling England home for the past six years, Karen has 12 years of experience in corporate communications with a Bachelor degree in Journalism and a Masters in Public Relations. Her experience has mostly been within public and health care sectors, most recently in pharmaceuticals, local government and Public Health England. 

Natalie is an experienced trainer, organisational development practitioner and skilled facilitator.

She has a post-graduate certificate in Systems Thinking in Practice, and is a qualified individual and team coach and has trained in adult learning, leadership development, quality improvement and using LEAN tools. She is experienced in designing and delivering EMCC-accredited coaching programmes and resources as well as facilitation and coaching for our external, national and local programmes.

Natalie has previously worked in a senior organisational development and effectiveness business partner role in an NHS Trust in the north west where she specialised in team-based working, performance coaching and leadership development across various community and inpatient settings. She has extensive experience of designing and delivering OD work in Forensic Secure Services. Her earlier career involved working learning and development for local government and the outsourcing industry.

Melanie is interim Communications Manager for the Coaching Academy, providing maternity leave cover.

She has 27 years’ experience as a journalist and communications specialist. She started her career at the Liverpool Echo as a reporter before moving to the Press Association as north-west reporter, then Scotland regional reporter and News Editor.

Melanie joined the Daily Record as Assistant News Editor in 2002, before becoming Features and Assistant Editor.

After returning from Scotland to the north-west for family reasons, she joined the NHS as Press and Public Relations Manager for The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre in 2016, before becoming Communications Manager for Liverpool Health Partners in 2020, for who she continues to provide communications support.

Molly provides support to a busy team including administration and logistics and she is currently completing a level four project management apprenticeship for 18 months whilst at the Innovation Agency.

Previously, Molly worked as a supervisor at a local business. She joined the Innovation Agency in September 2018, with this being her first NHS role. Molly is looking to further her studies in project management and to progress with the Innovation Agency.