Join ARU’s Panel of Public Collaborators
ARU's Let's Shape Research Together programme enables members of the public to collaborate with academics at the early stages of research design.
ARU's Let's Shape Research Together programme enables members of the public to collaborate with academics at the early stages of research design.
The programme was launched in 2023 to facilitate Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE) in research, which is conducted ‘with’ or ‘by’ service users, rather than ‘to’, ‘about’, or ‘for’ them.
While 'taking part' in research often means participating in trial or study at a relatively late stage, as someone 'engaged' in research, you'll collaborate with academics at the design phase of the research project, helping to determine what research is looked to, how it could be carried out, and how the results are shared and applied in your community.
Find out more about PPIE on the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) website.
The ARU Panel of Public Collaborators includes members of the public volunteering their time and lived experiences to make a difference in ARU's research. Areas of research include, but are not limited to: health, humanities and social science; science and engineering; and business.
You'll initially be invited to get involved in the planning and design stage of the research grant application, helping to ensure that academics consider the views of the community and create meaningful research that makes a positive impact on society.
If you express an interest to the PPIE Manager at this stage, you may have the opportunity to get involved with the research itself if the grant application is successful.
For some projects, your role will be to review research documents (Route 1), while others offer the opportunity to both review research documents and take part in a focus group (Route 2). Your feedback and ideas will be used to strengthen researchers’ grant applications.
As a Public Collaborator, you’ll have the opportunity to:
Further details on these Routes are highlighted in the induction pack.
ARU Public Collaborator Membership will be automatically renewed with each academic year. You may withdraw at any time.
As a Public Collaborator, you can decide how many research grant applications throughout the year you would like to be involved in.
We encourage Public Collaborators to engage as many times as they wish based on their time availability.
We will expect you to meet the deadlines and provide feedback if you express an interest to be involved. However, we want to highlight that there are no penalties if you do not wish to participate..
Ivy Ananda is an emerging Occupational Therapist and Public Health Practitioner, with experience supporting children with SEND and a commitment to inclusive, evidence-based practice in health and social care. She has lived experience of drug-induced mental illness and a strong interest in research that improves support for people with mental health challenges, as well as services for children and families.
Ivy Ananda joined the ARU Public Collaborator panel to contribute her professional knowledge and lived experience to research, helping ensure studies are relevant, inclusive, and have real-world impact.
Trevor is a Chartered Psychologist with 30 years’ experience teaching in further and higher education and clinical experience working in clinics and hospitals around the UK. He is interested in research into mental health in the area of schizophrenia, depression and stress. He joined the panel to both learn and to share his experience of research and psychology applied to current and future projects.
Sue has 30 years’ experience working for and with communities in local government, spending 15 years as a Participation Manager before moving into business analysis and project management roles.
Sue is passionate about citizen involvement in shaping services and is particularly interested in holistic (‘whole system’) approaches to solving complex issues. She’s also interested in data analytics and the ethical issues arising from obtaining and using personal data to inform decisions relating to public service provision.
Sue considers herself to be a ‘lifelong learner’ and she finds herself drawn to research as it provides an opportunity to flex her critical thinking skills.
Sean is a Community Research Facilitator at Queen Mary University of London’s Wolfson Institute of Population Health, Centre for Primary Care, working on a Wellcome Trust–funded Black Health Legacy study. He has a strong family history of type 2 diabetes and his own lived experience of prediabetes, which motivates him to engage in research that addresses metabolic health and health inequalities.
Sean’s interests include physiology, pathology, personalised healthcare, and public involvement in research. He joined the Panel to support research that is representative, culturally sensitive, and community-led.
Catherine’s background is in NHS managements and latterly in business and non-executive roles. Her work is in leadership development, and she specialises in supporting challenged teams and organisations.
Catherine’s key methods are action learning, appreciative inquiry, coaching, mentoring, mediation and facilitation. Her interests include healthcare, housing and leadership. She wants to contribute to and support research from a lay perspective by bringing her experience and expertise to the panel.
Catherine believes that the involvement of PPIE in the early stages of a research project has the potential to strengthen and deepen the quality of the final proposals.
Jeff is a retired member of the Chartered Institutes of Building and Architectural Technology. He has held senior management roles in corporate real estate at multi-national companies and as a director at a non-profit organisation. He is retired but continues to 'employ' his experience in voluntary work as an ARU Public Collaborator, PPI member at Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Cambridge Institute for Music Therapy Research advisory panel member, co-applicant PPI lead for UPTURN study into COPD in ethnic minority groups, and a school governor at Granta School.
Jeff joined the Panel to employ his experience and knowledge to assist and challenge and to help further research.
Lyubka is a Business and Human Resource Management graduate with a Postgraduate Certificate in Project Management and ongoing MBA studies. She is experienced in administrative coordination, student mentoring, and public involvement in research.
Lyubka has contributed to university-led social impact initiatives and multi-institutional knowledge exchange panels, offering objective feedback to strengthen research proposals. She is committed to inclusive practice and the meaningful integration of public insight into academic environments. She has strong interests in art and enterprise – informing a creative and community-focused approach to research.
Phil is a retired education service Senior Manager, Education Planning Consultant and Governance Trainer. He has delivered major strategic changes to state education provision in London and the South East including new schools, colleges and other educational organisations. He has chaired a large multi academy trust and is a lifelong member and former trustee of a local charity that supports adults with learning disabilities.
Phil's interests include baroque music, cool jazz, snooker and rugby and he currently sings second bass with the Chelmsford Singers who perform several times each year at various venues in Essex. He is particularly interested in the role of the arts – expressive, visual and performing – in supporting the learning and development of people with learning disabilities.
Neil has been undergoing a lot of medical treatment after working in a high-pressure environment for the last few years. He had a small stroke last year and since then has been suffering from balance, dizziness and heart problems. He has become very interested in diet and lifestyle and how this interacts with stress on the human body.
Neil has had many dealings with the NHS as a patient, and is also interested in keeping up with the latest in science and technology. He’d like to give back something after all of the care he has received the last couple of years.
Fariha is a medical doctor with a Public Health Fellowship from Pakistan and six years of experience teaching public health to undergraduate medical students. She has contributed to multiple research projects and is passionate about advancing public and clinical research that reflects real-world needs.
Fariha joined the Panel to support inclusive, evidence-based studies. She has contributed to a diverse range of research projects in Pakistan, covering topics such as beta-thalassemia mutations, chronic wound healing using platelet-rich plasma, radiology reporting accuracy, and risk factors for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. These studies reflect her interest in clinical audit, diagnostic improvement, and community health challenges.
To express your interest in joining us as a Public Collaborator, complete our online sign up form.
We'll then get in touch with a more detailed application for you to complete.
From there, you’ll receive an induction pack and be invited to an induction session, online or in-person. Once you’ve attended your induction session, you’ll be ready to go!
If you have any questions, email us at [email protected]
Are you a charity, start-up, not-for-profit, public sector organisation, or business interested in contributing to, and collaborating with ARU on ground-breaking research?
To find out more about research at ARU and have the opportunity to collaborate with ARU academics on research funding applications, complete our expression of interest form for organisations and we’ll get in touch as soon as possible to discuss your involvement.
Since 2022, ARU has been running the Participatory Research Funding internal scheme to support Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement in research. In the 2022-23 academic year, ten projects were funded for an overall sum of £56,750.19; in 2023-24, nine projects for £60,831.25; in 2024-25, eight projects for £44,804.69..
Find out more about some of the research we’ve co-produced with service users so far: