Our People

Meet the BrainWaves Team

BrainWaves is led by a multidisciplinary team of researchers, clinicians, educators, and philanthropic leaders working together to improve adolescent mental health and wellbeing. The team works in close partnership with schools, researchers, and policymakers to support high-quality, ethical research and improve adolescent mental health and wellbeing.

The BrainWaves team brings together expertise spanning psychiatry, neuroscience, education, data science, and research governance, alongside extensive experience working with schools, health systems, and large-scale research programmes.

Based primarily at the University of Oxford and partner institutions, the team combines rigorous scientific methodology with practical, operational insight to ensure research is both robust and directly applicable to real-world settings.

Collectively, the leadership team provides the strategic oversight, governance, and collaborative working required to deliver a credible, ethical, and sustainable long-term programme that is grounded in the lived realities of schools and the needs of young people.

Meet the Team

Dora Loewenstein
President, BrainWaves
Geoff Nicholas
Co-Chair, BrainWaves Trustee Board
Paulo Eapen
Co-Chair, BrainWaves Trustee Board
Aideen Lee
Member, Advisory Board
Dora Loewenstein
President, BrainWaves
Geoff Nicholas
Co-Chair, BrainWaves Trustee Board
John Geddes
Member, Advisory Board
Paulo Eapen
Co-Chair, BrainWaves Trustee Board
Dora Loewenstein
President, BrainWaves
Geoff Nicholas
Co-Chair, BrainWaves Trustee Board
John Gallacher
Director, BrainWaves / Professor of Cognitive Health, University of Oxford
Julian Turner
Director of Education, BrainWaves / Director, The Day
Natalie Coles
Chief Operating Officer, BrainWaves
Paulo Eapen
Co-Chair, BrainWaves Trustee Board
Sarah Bauermeister
Director, BrainWaves / Associate Professor, Psychiatry, University of Oxford
Emma Squires
Chief Operating Officer (DPUK Data Portal) and Head of Programmes and Innovation (SeRP)
Ian Thompson
Professor of Inclusive Education, University of Oxford
John Gallacher
Director, BrainWaves / Professor of Cognitive Health, University of Oxford
Julian Turner
Director of Education, BrainWaves / Director, The Day
Natalie Coles
Chief Operating Officer, BrainWaves
Sarah Bauermeister
Director, BrainWaves / Associate Professor, Psychiatry, University of Oxford
Simon Thompson
Professor of Health Informatics, Swansea University; Director, UK Secure e-Research Platform (SeRP)
Dr Ilona Boniwell, PhD
Member, Scientific Advisory Board
Matthew Biel
Member, Scientific Advisory Board
Professor John Wright
Member, Scientific Advisory Board
Professor Mireille Toledano
Member, Scientific Advisory Board
Professor Stephen Houghton
Member, Scientific Advisory Board
Professor Sun Jae Jung
Member, Scientific Advisory Board
Sinead Brophy
Member, Scientific Advisory Board
Catrin Morris
Operations Manager (DPUK Data Portal)
Emma Squires
Chief Operating Officer (DPUK Data Portal) and Head of Programmes and Innovation (SeRP)
Lauren Walters
DPUK Administrator
Shankly Cragg
Senior Project Officer and Software Engineer, SeRP
Simon Thompson
Professor of Health Informatics, Swansea University; Director, UK Secure e-Research Platform (SeRP)
Abhaya Adlakha
Researcher, BrainWaves
Dr Simon Young
Data Strategy Manager, BrainWaves
Galit Geulayov
Senior Researcher, BrainWaves
John Gallacher
Director, BrainWaves / Professor of Cognitive Health, University of Oxford
Sarah Bauermeister
Director, BrainWaves / Associate Professor, Psychiatry, University of Oxford
Beth Cooke
YPAG Lead, BrainWaves
Ceri Bannister
Research Partner Programme Coordinator, BrainWaves
Frankie Riley
Research Partner Programme Coordinator, BrainWaves
Ian Thompson
Professor of Inclusive Education, University of Oxford
Julian Turner
Director of Education, BrainWaves / Director, The Day
Kyle Morrison
YPAG Co-Lead, BrainWaves
Naomi French
Research Partner Programme Manager, BrainWaves
Thomas Godfrey-Faussett
Education Researcher and DPhil Candidate, University of Oxford
Tracey Riseborough
Content Manager, BrainWaves
Ginny Kearns
Senior Fundraising & Development Manager, BrainWaves
James Williams
Fundraising & Development Manager, BrainWaves
Sally Renny
Senior Events Manager, Events and Philanthropy, BrainWaves
Natalie Coles
Chief Operating Officer, BrainWaves
Tara Pilkington
Senior Marketing & Communications Executive, BrainWaves
Kamran Rasheed
Finance Manager, BrainWaves
Abhaya Adlakha
Researcher, BrainWaves
Aideen Lee
Member, Advisory Board
Beth Cooke
YPAG Lead, BrainWaves
Catrin Morris
Operations Manager (DPUK Data Portal)
Ceri Bannister
Research Partner Programme Coordinator, BrainWaves
Dora Loewenstein
President, BrainWaves
Dr Ilona Boniwell, PhD
Member, Scientific Advisory Board
Dr Simon Young
Data Strategy Manager, BrainWaves
Emma Squires
Chief Operating Officer (DPUK Data Portal) and Head of Programmes and Innovation (SeRP)
Frankie Riley
Research Partner Programme Coordinator, BrainWaves
Galit Geulayov
Senior Researcher, BrainWaves
Geoff Nicholas
Co-Chair, BrainWaves Trustee Board
Ginny Kearns
Senior Fundraising & Development Manager, BrainWaves
Ian Thompson
Professor of Inclusive Education, University of Oxford
James Williams
Fundraising & Development Manager, BrainWaves
John Gallacher
Director, BrainWaves / Professor of Cognitive Health, University of Oxford
John Geddes
Member, Advisory Board
Julian Turner
Director of Education, BrainWaves / Director, The Day
Kamran Rasheed
Finance Manager, BrainWaves
Kyle Morrison
YPAG Co-Lead, BrainWaves
Lauren Walters
DPUK Administrator
Matthew Biel
Member, Scientific Advisory Board
Naomi French
Research Partner Programme Manager, BrainWaves
Natalie Coles
Chief Operating Officer, BrainWaves
Paulo Eapen
Co-Chair, BrainWaves Trustee Board
Professor John Wright
Member, Scientific Advisory Board
Professor Mireille Toledano
Member, Scientific Advisory Board
Professor Stephen Houghton
Member, Scientific Advisory Board
Professor Sun Jae Jung
Member, Scientific Advisory Board
Sally Renny
Senior Events Manager, Events and Philanthropy, BrainWaves
Sarah Bauermeister
Director, BrainWaves / Associate Professor, Psychiatry, University of Oxford
Shankly Cragg
Senior Project Officer and Software Engineer, SeRP
Simon Thompson
Professor of Health Informatics, Swansea University; Director, UK Secure e-Research Platform (SeRP)
Sinead Brophy
Member, Scientific Advisory Board
Tara Pilkington
Senior Marketing & Communications Executive, BrainWaves
Thomas Godfrey-Faussett
Education Researcher and DPhil Candidate, University of Oxford
Tracey Riseborough
Content Manager, BrainWaves