Our people
Dominika Blachnicka-Ciacek
The University of Sheffield
Dr Al Mathers
Director of Research
Having previously been Director of Research and Learning at the RSA, and Head of Research at Good Things Foundation, Al is passionate about The Young Foundation’s commitment to realising a fairer future with communities, and supporting evidence-driven social change.
Dr Cath Sleeman
Quantitative Research Fellow, Nesta
An award-winning quantitative research fellow, Cath’s work explores new insights from big data, recently focusing on improving labour market information, and measuring diversity in the creative economy.
Dr Darren Sharpe
Senior Consultant, Institute of Public Care at Oxford Brookes University
Both a senior consultant at the Institute of Public Care and a senior research fellow with the NIHR CLARHC, North Thames, Darren is a trained sociologist who has worked with UK Research Councils, Central Government Departments, and NGOs and charities to assess the impact of national and locally-run public programmes.
Dr Elaine Bauer
Senior Research Fellow and Lecturer, London South Bank University
Elaine is a social anthropologist with research interests including international migration, transnationalism, language brokering, race/ethnicity, and ‘mixed’ families. She is a senior research fellow and lecturer at LSBU, and associate fellow at Institute of Latin American Studies.
Dr Henry Kippin
CEO, North of Tyne Combined Authority
Henry is a Strategic Adviser to The Young Foundation. He was formerly an executive director at the West Midlands Combined Authority, responsible for its work on inclusive growth, public service reform, climate change and digital.
Dr Marcia Brophy
Senior Mental Health Advisor, Save the Children International
Marcia is a child psychologist wellbeing and mental health specialist, currently working for Save the Children International, based in Jordan. She has previously worked for UNHCR in Bangladesh, and worked in Sri Lanka for ChildFund International, Shanthiham, and for the Sri Lankan Government’s Department of Health.
Dr Phil Cohen
Co-Founder, Living Maps
Phil has worked to build a network of academics, artists and activists, exploring creative approaches to the social mapping of the city. His background is in ethnographic research, with particular interest in the cultures and communities of East London.
Dr Seán Carey PhD
Senior Research Fellow, University of Manchester
With a deep interest in ethnicity and migration, Seán has dedicated much of his career to studying the Bangladeshi community in east London. He is also focused on the economic, political and social organisation of Mauritius, and has written on this for platforms including The Guardian, New African, and New Statesman.
Dr Tony Flower
Founding Chair, The Young Foundation
Now retired, Tony was The Young Foundation’s founding chair in 2005, having been Michael Young’s right-hand man throughout the 1980s and 90s. He has been director of numerous charitable and voluntary organisations, and has acted as consultant to many others – notably the Joseph Rowntree Reform Trust.