Our team

Meet the Science Council team! We’re here to help with any questions you might have on professional registration for yourself, your organisation or any other general queries. Please see below for our full staff list for contact details.

Unsure who to speak to? Contact general enquiries here.

Want to join our friendly team? Check our vacancies here.

 

Governance and Operations

Helen Gordon, Chief Executive

Helen Gordon, Chief Executive

Helen is responsible for the overall running of the Science Council and development of the team, to deliver the strategy set by the Board, ensure that members are served and that the Council positively contributes to the wider scientific community.  Read more about Helen.

Email: Helen

Download the Chief Executive's Scheme of Delegation.

Oli O'Hanlon, Corporate Services and Governance Manager

Oliver (Science Council Policy & Public Affairs Manager)

Oli has responsibility for ensuring the organisation has a well-functioning corporate and governance structure, including Board, Council and subcommittee meetings. He is currently studying to become a Chartered Secretary through The Chartered Governance Institute.

Telephone: 020 3434 2025

Email: Oli

Enam Ali, Finance and Administration Executive

Enam provides financial,office and general administration support to ensure the smooth running of the organisation. He is the first point of contact with our suppliers and contractors.

Email: Enam

 

Registration and Licensing

Tanya Murrell, Registration and Licensing Manager

Profile photo of Science Council team member TanyaTanya leads on matters of professionalism and registration; setting, maintaining and improving standards for individual scientists, and the licensing and accreditation systems for professional bodies.

Email: Tanya

Yasmin Finch, Senior Registration Officer

Yasmin leads on our Common Application Process (CAP). Yasmin supports applicants that are applying for professional registration.

Email: Yasmin

Mauro Falcon Martini Hallett, Registration Coordinator

Mauro is responsible for running the Routes to Registration committee (RTR) as well as providing support to the Registration and Licensing team to ensure that standards are upheld.

Email: Mauro

Mike James, CSci Consultant

Mike James is a Chartered Scientist with over 35 years’ experience working in analytical chemistry, nuclear innovation and more latterly in the field of the management strategy for special nuclear material. Mike has worked in the field of professional development for approximately twenty years leading an accredited scheme for chemists in the nuclear industry and has supported the Royal Society of Chemistry in their work assessing professional chemists. Recently retired, Mike is continuing to work as a volunteer at a Hawk and Owl Centre and has recently taken on the role of volunteer at a local museum, where he supports the curator on scientific, technical and geological materials. Mike is the Science Council’s assessor trainer and provides support to the Registration and Licensing Team.

 

Membership, Marketing and Policy

Jane Banks, External Relationships Manager

Jane leads on our work with external partners to promote professional recognition of the scientific and technical community, and actively promoting the role and work of the Science Council and its Members.

Telephone: 020 3434 2029 / 07715 677909 Email: Jane

Ruth Herbert, Marketing and Communications Officer

Ruth provides marketing and communications support for the rest of team and manages the Science Council website, newsletter and social media channels.

Telephone: 020 3434 2029 / 07544 164356

Email: Ruth

Brian Wagenbach, Member Engagement Manager

Brian Wagenbach black and white portraitBrian manages the relationships we have with our member organisations, ensuring that staff and volunteers at these professional bodies have an excellent experience and that the organisation is getting value from Science Council membership. He is also responsible for developing and delivering services that support member organisations to attract and retain their own members.

Telephone: 020 3434 2018

Email: Brian

Ryan Mercer, Senior Policy Officer

Ryan leads on our policy work including developing policy positions, liaising with members and engaging with other policy stakeholders.

Email: Ryan

Liz Gill, Online Events Coordinator

As our online events coordinator, Liz is responsible for developing the preparation, delivery and evaluation of events to ensure excellent customer experience and engagement for Member organisations and registrants.

Email: Liz

 

Technical Pathways and Education

Richard Holliday, Head of Technical Pathway Development

Richard is on secondment from the Royal Society of Chemistry, leading our Gatsby funded project which seeks to enhance technical routes into the sciences by further integrating professional registration standards into apprenticeships, T Levels and higher technical qualifications.

Email: Richard

Tom Cheek, Apprenticeship Lead

Tom is the Apprenticeship Lead at the Science Council.  Tom's role is largely to work with member bodies and the wider community to promote and build the prestige of apprenticeships and wider technical education within the sciences.

Email: Tom

Phone: 07541 741889

 

Technician Commitment

Kelly Vere MBE, Technician Commitment Programme Director

Kelly (Science Council Business and Engagement Manager)Kelly is on secondment with the Science Council, leading on our work with the Higher Education sector and industry to promote a professional identity for scientists and technicians. She is Director of Technical Strategy at the University of Nottingham and PI for the TALENT Commission for Midlands Innovation.

Telephone: 020 3434 2023

Email: Kelly

Simon Breeden, Associate Lead for Technician Commitment

Simon is on part-time secondment to the Science Council from the University of York where he works alongside Kelly Vere on the Technician Commitment, ensuring visibility, recognition, career development and sustainability for technical skills and roles in higher education.

EmailSimon

Dr Clare Stevenson CSci, Associate Lead for Technician Commitment

Clare has worked at the John Innes Centre (JIC) in for nearly 25 years in technical roles.  Currently her time is split between managing the Biophysical Analysis Facility which uses several techniques to look at bio-molecular interactions and the Protein Crystallography facility where she has extensive expertise crystallising protein and solving their 3D structures.

In addition to her science role Clare is passionate about Technician visibility and recognition.  She is the lead for the Technician Commitment at JIC and was a founding member of the Research Institute Technician Group which now represents 9 research institutes all of which are signatories of the Technician Commitment.

Clare is excited to have a part time secondment to the Science Council to work alongside Kelly Vere and Simon Breeden to support the Technician Commitment in ensuring visibility, recognition, career development and sustainability for technical staff across Research Institutes and Higher Education.

 

Applicant Support Mentors

Science Council Applicant Support Mentors facilitate workshops aimed at supporting individuals to understand the process for professional registration and the requirements to completing an application. For further information email enquiries@sciencecouncil.org.

Rob Butler CSciTeach, Applicant Support Mentor

Rob was a science teacher for over 20 years, spending the last six as a deputy head before leaving to pursue a career as an independent consultant. Rob is a Field Officer at the Association for Science Education (ASE) and also holds Chartered Science Teacher status through them, gaining his professional registration in 2011. Rob is passionate about science at all levels of society and the importance of being professionally registered.

Watch our bio video of Rob here.

Laurence Dawkins-Hall FRSB, FIScT(Reg), CSci, CBiol, Applicant Support Mentor

Laurence is an award-winning life sciences technician with an international CV, holding two sets of Fellowships for “distinguished conduct” pertaining to professional registration. Laurence also holds the awards of Chartered Scientist (CSci) and Chartered Biologist (Cbiol): He is an end point assessor for the IST, Science Council and RSB and, in the context of Cbiol, assesses and also trains new assessors for the Royal Society of Biology. For the last 5 years, Laurence has delivered and facilitated registration workshops across the UK at conferences and industrial forums. In 2023, he was head hunted to become an external consultant and end point assessor for the EPAO, Marshall Assessment.

Watch our bio video of Laurence here.

Stephen Franey CSci, Applicant Support Mentor

Stephen's main areas of scientific expertise are Histology, Microscopy, & Immunohistochemistry, having originally trained as a Biomedical Scientist. Other areas of expertise include conference management, network coordination and CPD facilitator. He is passionate about training scientific & technical staff in higher and further education, and related organisations across the UK. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Anatomical Sciences (FIAS); Member of the Royal Society of Biology and a Chartered Scientist through the Royal Society of Biology.

Watch our bio video of Stephen