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Leading research, analysis and change from within the NHS

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SU Insights

Publication 05/05/26 Strategy Unit
Doctor putting and stacking wooden block cube which print screen health care and medical icons for healthy and wellness concept.

A new tool to help systems to deliver the left shift

News 01/07/26 Katie Spanjers
Colorful wooden Tetris-like blocks are stacked and scattered on a wooden surface with a green background.

Complex problems and Multi-Disciplinary Teams

News 02/06/26 Fraser Battye
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Event

SU Insights

05/05/26 Strategy Unit

‘SU Insights’ is a series of events hosted by the Strategy Unit, exploring the latest analytical insights with leading experts.

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Report

New Medicine Service and Personal Health Costs Evaluation

16/07/26 Bethany Mitchell

Evaluation of the community pharmacy-based New Medicine Service and Personal Health Costs intervention.

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NICE vs Not So NICE: Clinical vs Operational Excellence

13/07/26 Mohammed Amin Mohammed

If operational decisions shape patient outcomes as much as clinical decisions, why doesn't the NHS support them with the same evidence infrastructure?

Doctor putting and stacking wooden block cube which print screen health care and medical icons for healthy and wellness concept.
Tool

A new tool to help systems to deliver the left shift

01/07/26 Katie Spanjers

Our new tool to help systems explore opportunities to reduce hospital care.

Two people stand on opposite sides of a number on the ground; one sees a 6, the other sees a 9, each pointing and stating their perspective.
Blog post

Neighbourhoods and hospital activity: oh yes it can, oh no it can’t?

30/06/26 Fraser Battye

Simple, intuitive ideas don’t draw critical attention. They stroll about the policy world, untested and unscathed. And they can survive, unaltered, for decades.

An anonymised NHS appointment letter lying on a wooden table, photographed from above with a visible fold crease and NHS logo.
News

Improving the experience of waiting: the evidence behind new NHS minimum standards

29/06/26 Claire Maynard

New NHS patient experience minimum standards aim to improve how people experience waiting for elective care

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Meet the Team

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Peter Spilsbury
Peter Spilsbury
Director of The Strategy Unit
Peter has worked in the NHS for nearly 40 years. In that time, he has held Director positions in provider, commissioning and strategic NHS…
More about Peter
Abeda Mulla
Abeda Mulla
Process Evaluation Lead
Abe has over 25 years’ of experience in research and evaluation in medical and applied social science disciplines, in…
More about Abeda
Alison Turner
Head of Knowledge Mobilisation
Alison brings 30 years’ experience supporting evidence-informed decision making. She actively engages in professional networks and has contributed…
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Andrew Jones
Andrew Jones
Senior Healthcare Analyst
Andrew has worked for the Strategy Unit since 2015, covering both research and education. His recent project work includes: Analysing opportunities…
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Andy Hood
Andy Hood
Analytics Manager
Andy has an academic and practical background in public health, having worked in the NHS in analytical and intelligence roles for 17 years. …
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David Frith
David Frith
Head of Unit Management and Development
David has worked in the NHS since 2008, including roles in commissioning, major programme management and strategic planning in the acute sector. He…
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Deborah Mabbley
Deborah Mabbley
Senior Business Manager
Deborah has 23 years’ experience within the NHS in business management, customer service and administration.  She has excellent organisational and…
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Fraser Battye
Fraser Battye
Head of Policy
Fraser has over 25 years of experience as a policy analyst and advisor. He has worked on topics as diverse as neighbourhood renewal, end of life care…
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Jake Parsons
Jake Parsons
Analytics Manager
Before joining the NHS, Jake worked as a senior performance analyst in a large social services department. He has also worked as an auditor and…
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James de Lacy
James de Lacy
Senior Consultant
James has worked in the NHS for almost 10 years and has considerable experience in strategic consultancy projects.  His recent Strategy Unit…
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Jon Cook
Coaching Consultant
Jon has over 25 years experience working for the NHS and has worked at all tiers in the NHS, gaining a national perspective whilst working for the…
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Karen Bradley
Principal Consultant
Karen is a highly experienced leader of change providing strategic consultancy and complex improvement services.  She has had an eclectic career…
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Lorna Crofts
Lorna Crofts
Business Manager
Lorna hold a Masters in Business Administration and has 14 years’ experience working within the NHS. This has seen her work across commissioner,…
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Mahmoda Begum
Mahmoda Begum
Senior Consultant
Mahmoda has over 15 years’ experience working in the health and wellbeing sector. She has worked in community, commercial and public sector…
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Mike Woodall
Mike Woodall
Analytics Manager
Mike has over 25 years’ experience in analytical roles across the health and care sector. He has worked on projects within commissioning, acute,…
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Paul Seamer
Analytics Manager
Paul has many years’ experience of leading research and analytical projects across health, local government, and the wider public sector. Before…
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Shiona Aldridge
Shiona Aldridge
Managing Consultant
Shiona draws on over 10 years’ experience working in the NHS. Prior to this, she worked as a data analyst in the corporate sector, supporting an NHS…
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Steven Wyatt
Steven Wyatt
Head of Research and Policy
Steven has 20 years’ experience leading and managing analytical services in the health and social care sector. He has broad, practical experience of…
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David Callaghan
David Callaghan
Managing Consultant and Deputy Team Lead
David is an experienced evaluator and project director within the NHS. He is also Operations Lead and Deputy Team Lead for evaluation. Prior to…
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Simon Bourne
Simon Bourne
Principal Consultant
Simon leads the Strategy Unit partnership with the New Hospital Programme - he is a member of the programme's senior leadership team and oversees…
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Richard Ward
Richard Ward
Consultant
Richard is an experienced evidence reviewer and qualitative researcher, with eight years of experience applying these skills in an NHS consultancy…
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Zaheera Teladia
Zaheera Teladia
Senior Consultant
Zaheera has an undergraduate degree in Social Sciences with Social Policy and a Master’s in Public Health. She has extensive experience of working on…
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Mohammed Amin Mohammed
Mohammed Amin Mohammed
Head of Innovations and Academic Partnerships
Mohammed’s recent work at the Strategy Unit includes: Technical director to the AI evaluation with NHSX providing methodological advice in respect…
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Stewart Loughlin
Head of Business Management
With over 20 years working in the public and private sectors, Stewart has gained deep experience in education, care and technology. His previous…
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Thomas Jemmett
Thomas Jemmett
Senior Healthcare Analyst
Tom has over a decade of experience working in analytical roles within the NHS – including in acute provider trusts in the West Midlands. He has…
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Alexander Lawless
Alexander Lawless
Analytics Manager
Alexander’s background is varied and wide ranging. He has worked as a hospital staff nurse and a local authority analyst. He also has a Master’s in…
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Rachel Caswell
Rachel Caswell
Senior Healthcare Analyst
Rachel has over 20 years’ analytical, project management and leadership experience in NHS and local government organisations. She has a master’s…
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Paul Mason
Paul Mason
Head of Evaluation
Paul has 28 years’ experience of applied research and evaluation working in academic and consultancy settings, working for NHS clients and…
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Bethany Taylor
Bethany Mitchell
Senior Consultant
Recent projects at the Strategy Unit include:   Managing and delivering a qualitative evaluation of a pilot of Combined Health Checks for…
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Eleanor Jones
Ellie Jones
Senior Consultant
Ellie is an experienced qualitative researcher and evaluation project manager within the NHS. Ellie recently completed a…
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Jane Greenstock
Jane Greenstock
Senior Consultant
Jane has over 15 years’ experience in health and social-care research and evaluation, gained in the voluntary, commercial…
More about Jane
Sarah Gilliland
Sarah Gilliland
Business Manager
With a strong background in business administration, Sarah has years of experience in client care, finance support, and performance management.…
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Charlotte Henderson
Charlotte Henderson
Business Manager
Prior to joining the Strategy Unit, Charlotte worked for the NHS Quality Review Service. There she supported programmes of work to help services…
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Romaana Kapadi
Romaana Kapadi-Cooper
Consultant
Before joining The Strategy Unit, Romaana worked collaboratively with a range of stakeholders on numerous clinical research projects in…
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Sheila Ali
Consultant
Sheila has extensive research and evaluation experience in both the NHS and academic contexts, working with both quantitative and…
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Natasha Stephenson
Natasha Stephenson
Consultant
Natasha has a master’s in health psychology and has 10 years of experience working in the community as a Healthy Lifestyle Practitioner, supporting…
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Marya Mobeen
Marya Mobeen
Consultant
Marya completed a master’s degree in Health Psychology at Aston University. During this time, she developed a theory and evidence-informed…
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Jon Cook
Coaching Consultant
Jon has over 25 years experience working for the NHS and has worked at all tiers in the NHS, gaining a national perspective whilst working for the…
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James Sandy
James Sandy
Senior Consultant
James has worked extensively across local government, clinical commissioning, the voluntary sector, and professional bodies leading policy, research…
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Jacqueline Grout
Jacqueline Grout
Senior Healthcare Analyst
Jacqueline has 10 years of experience working in analytical roles within the NHS primarily in an integrated care provider trust in Greater Manchester…
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Sally Thompson
Senior Healthcare Analyst
Sally has around 10  years’ experience in healthcare analysis within the NHS, working across England and Scotland. Her recent experience…
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Craig Parylo
Craig Parylo
Senior Healthcare Analyst
Craig has led and contributed to a wide range of evaluation and analytical projects at the Strategy Unit, including work on stroke prevention, cancer…
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Sarah Lucas
Sarah Lucas
Healthcare Analyst
Sarah has a PhD in neuroscience and over 15 years’ experience in academic research. Prior to joining the Strategy Unit, she worked on a variety of ‘…
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Fikriyudin Mufasir
Fikriyudin Mufasir
Healthcare Analyst
Fikri is an experienced quantitative analyst with several years of expertise in the NHS and the private sector in…
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Clare Humble
Interim Head of Strategy and Change
Clare has led on projects which include: The development and leadership of intelligence and research functions The creation, application and…
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Chris Beeley
Head of Data Science
Chris has led on the collection, collation, and analysis of patient experience in previous roles, and his team are currently working on a project to…
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Caileigh Solomenca
Business Manager
Caileigh has over 5 years experience as a Project Co-ordinator supporting the management of projects and workshops. She has developed her skills in…
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Zoë Turner
Zoë Turner
Senior Data Scientist
Zoë has developed and delivered training in Introduction to R and R Studio, Train the Trainer and RMarkdown supporting hundreds of colleagues from…
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Sam Callanan
Sam Callanan
Senior Consultant
Sam has 15 years of experience as a researcher and evaluator in the NHS, voluntary sector, and for local and national…
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Katie Spanjers
Katie Spanjers
Senior Consultant
Having started her career as a clinician in the NHS, Katie has gone on to gain experience in undertaking and manging evaluation in academia and…
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Maciej Waszak-Hayes
Business Manager
Maciej has over 8 years’ experience working in NHS in learning and development. He also developed his skills in organising and coordinating events…
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Jennifer Wood
Managing Consultant
Jenny has 15 years of experience in social research and analysis in organisations. Recently, she has focussed on consultancy, working on a range of…
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Josh Cook
Consultant
Prior to joining the Strategy Unit, Josh worked in a variety of education roles predominantly supporting young people with special educational needs…
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Gareth Hooper
Impact Evaluation Analytics Manager
Gareth is an experienced quantitative analyst and project manager. Prior to working at The Strategy Unit he worked in several NHS and…
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Matt Dray
Senior Data Scientist
Matt worked for nearly a decade as a data specialist in five central-government departments, including the Cabinet Office and Government Digital…
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Jonathan Spencer
Senior Analyst
Jonathan previously worked for the Nuffield Trust, and as a researcher in health economics at Kings College London. At the Nuffield Trust, he was a…
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YiWen Hon
Data Scientist
YiWen has over 10 years’ experience in information management in the higher education and healthcare sectors. Since switching careers into data…
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Kathryn Rogers
Consultant
Kathryn has a background in social science and charity management and has worked in local and national charities, using evidence to inform and…
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André Castro Bilbrough
Healthcare Analyst
André previously worked for a Third Sector organisation who conducted evaluations across the health and social care spaces. This included leading the…
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Anya Ferguson
Healthcare Analyst
Anya previously worked with an NHS Trust completing routine reports and projects such as developing a new Performance Reporting framework. There she…
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Andriana Vinnitchok
Senior Consultant
Andriana is an experienced public sector consultant, project manager and mixed-methods researcher, specialising in qualitative research and theory-…
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Rhian Davies
Senior Data Scientist
Prior to joining The Strategy Unit, Rhian worked as a data science consultant, specialising in R development and training. She is a highly rated…
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Katie Davies
Consultant
Katie has an academic background in sociology, completing a Bachelor’s and Master’s in sociology, with a focus on qualitative research methodology,…
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Claire Welsh
Lead Data Scientist
Claire has a decade of experience of frontline clinical veterinary medicine, and another in health data science and analysis for academia and policy…
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Lucy Morgan
Head of Analytics and Modelling
Lucy has worked across industry and academia at using simulation for problem solving. Prior to joining The Strategy Unit, Lucy worked as a research…
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Dechante Johnson
Research Assistant
Before joining The Strategy Unit, Dechante worked across roles in health, academic and community settings. She worked in co-…
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Claire Maynard
Senior Consultant
Claire has delivered a wide range of projects with diverse participant groups and stakeholders. Before joining the Strategy Unit, she worked in…
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Faizan Mahmood
Senior Analyst
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Hoi Ying Cheng
Research Assistant
Hoi Ying has an academic background in Psychology, completing a Bachelor’s and Master of Research in Psychology with a focus on…
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Shaurya Sinha
Research Assistant
Shaurya holds a master’s in public health. Before joining the Strategy Unit, she worked on mixed methods research, including projects…
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Eirini Komninou
Senior Data Scientist
Eirini has a proven track record applying Artificial Intelligence in both dynamic startup environments and the demanding field of Space Engineering.…
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Heather Humphreys
Healthcare Analyst
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Katie Spanjers
Senior Consultant
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Francis Barton
Data Scientist
Before joining the Strategy Unit, Francis worked as a data analyst specialising in maternity services at an acute NHS Trust, after several years…
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