Turning science into healthcare
Genomics England aims to help everyone benefit from genomic healthcare.
Leadership Team
The Executive Leadership Team works alongside the Board of Directors to set and influence our strategic direction, while providing leadership both within the organisation and externally, as ambassadors and thought leaders.
Dr Richard Scott
Chief Executive Officer
Dr Natalie Banner
Chief Ethics and Engagement Officer
Professor Matt Brown
Chief Scientific Officer
Catherine Byers
Chief Financial and Performance Officer
Jackie Kinsey
Chief People Officer
Nick Maltby
General Counsel, Company Secretary and Data Protection Officer
Dr Augusto Rendon
Chief Bioinformatician
Chris Schonewald
Chief of Staff and Director of Strategy
Dr Ellen Thomas
Chief Medical Officer
Julian Thomas
Chief Technology and Product Officer
Board
The Genomics England Board oversees all of our activities, ratifies all major decisions and sets the overall strategy for the organisation. Genomics England has several independent advisory committees that report to the board. These include the Ethics Advisory Committee, Science Advisory Committee, Data Advisory Committee, Access Review Committee, GeCIP Board and the Audit Committee.
Baroness Nicola Blackwood
Chair
Dr Richard Scott
Chief Executive Officer
Dr Vikram Bajaj
Non-Executive Director
Professor Ewan Birney
Non-Executive Director
Professor Matt Brown
Chief Scientific Officer
Dr Annalisa Jenkins
Non-Executive Director
Nicola Perrin MBE
Non-Executive Director
Dr Keith Stewart
Non-Executive Director
Participant Panel
The Participant Panel sits at the heart of Genomics England and is made up of participants from the 100,000 Genomes Project, and parents or carers of people involved in this project. It is expanding to include patients and relatives from the GenOMICC COVID-19 study and NHS patients who give consent for their whole genome sequences and associated health data to be used for research in the Genomics England National Genomic Research Library.
The Panel acts as an advisory body to the Genomics England Board, working to ensure that the health data held by Genomics England is being looked after with respect and used in the best interests of our participants.
Helen White
Vice-Chair for Cancer
Adam Clatworthy
Vice-Chair for Rare Conditions
Frances Allan
Participant Panel member
Paul Arvidson
Participant Panel member
Lisa Beaton
Participant Panel member
Dr Helen Bulbeck
Participant Panel member
Dr Latha Chandramouli
Participant Panel member
Mel Dixon
Participant Panel member
Clarissa Hopkins
Participant Panel member
Hannah Humphrey
Participant Panel member
Ismael Kherroubi García
Participant Panel member
Dave McCormick
Participant Panel member
Emma Walters
Participant Panel member
Kirsty Irvine
Chair of the Participant Panel
Eva Bensasson
Participant Panel Member
Claire Whitehill
Participant Panel Member
Jo Wright
Participant Panel member
Science Advisory Committee
As a group of UK and international scientific experts, our Science Advisory Committee advises us on the development and delivery of Genomics England's research programmes.
This committee plays a key role in shaping our research-related policies, identifying research priorities and opportunities for research partnerships, in addition to steering the overall scientific direction of Genomics England. The committee considers the interests of patients, the public, scientists and clinicians engaged in genomic research or genomic medicine.
Professor James Brenton
Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute
Professor Patrick Chinnery
University of Cambridge
Professor Dame Sue Hill
NHS England
Professor Matthew Hurles
Wellcome Sanger Institute
Professor David Lomas
Deputy Chair, Scientific Advisory Committee
Professor Anna Schuh
University of Oxford
Professor Samra Turajlic
Cancer Research UK
Dr Richard Lee
The Royal Marsden
Professor Eleftheria Zeggini
Helmholtz Munich
Professor Bill Newman
University of Manchester
Professor Claudia Langenberg
Queen Mary University London
Professor Matthew Wood
University of Oxford
Professor Segun Fatumo
Queen Mary University London
Professor Caroline Dive
Cancer Research UK
Professor Sarah Blagden
University of Oxford
Professor Tim Hubbard
ELIXIR
Ethics Advisory Committee
The Ethics Advisory Committee (EAC) provides independent ethical advice and oversight to Genomics England’s programmes, processes and partnerships. It advises the Genomics England Board on current and emerging ethics issues related to the activities of the organisation and the wider genomics ecosystem.
The expertise and experience of the members includes, but is not limited to:
- Participants
- Clinical Genetics/Genomics
- Bioethics
- Medical Law
- International/global ethics
- Data Ethics
The current focus of the committee is consent as a lifelong relationship, with a focus on transitions in life course including young people turning 16 and adults losing, or having fluctuating, capacity.
Dr Latha Chandramouli
Participant Panel member
Professor Sir Jonathan Montgomery
Chair of the Ethics Advisory Committee
Francis Crawley
Executive Director, Good Clinical Practice Alliance
Professor Angus Clarke
Cardiff University
Anne Croudass
Cancer Research UK
Professor Adam Hedgecoe
Professor of Social Science, Cardiff University
Associate Professor Ruth Horn
Associate Professor in Ethics, Ethox
Hannah Humphrey
Participant Panel member
Ismael Kherroubi García
Participant Panel member
Dr Mavis Machirori
Senior Researcher, Ada Lovelace Institute
Dr Pete Mills
Executive Director at the PHG Foundation
Nicola Perrin MBE
Non-Executive Director
Dr Nadeem Qureshi
University of Nottingham
Professor Rameen Shakur
Professor of Genomics and Precision Cardiovascular Medicine
Nechama Wieder
PhD Candidate in Clinical Medicine, University of Oxford
Access Review Committee
The Access Review Committee’s (ARC) role is to provide an independent examination and response to requests for access to genomic and health data held in the National Genomic Research Library (NGRL). These requests come from academic researchers, clinicians, and commercial researchers.
There is a set application process for these individuals to go through to access the data. The ARC reviews these applications to check that they are in line with the aims of the NGRL protocol and to assess whether they are in the interest of both the public and the participants.
Joining the Access Review Committee
Genomics England is currently looking to recruit new members to its Access Review Committee.
What the Access Review Committee does
The ARC provides advice to Genomics England on data access policy and provides independent decision-making for access to genomic and health data in the NGRL.
Requests come from academic researchers, clinicians, and commercial organisations. The ARC oversees these requests and has an ongoing monitoring function to ensure access to data leads towards benefits for patients and meets the expectations of participants whose data is held in the NGRL.
As a member, you’ll help to ensure we strike the right balance of safeguarding data while enabling it to be used to drive life-saving diagnostics and treatments for patients.
Members of the ARC
The ARC includes participants whose data is held in the NGRL, alongside members with expertise in clinical genomics, data access, preclinical research, participant involvement, and data security. We are keen to continue having a diverse, vocal and collaborative committee to help us in this mission.
Details of the role
We are looking for new members with particular expertise in any of the following:
- Bioinformatics
- Clinical genomics (including experience in the NHS Genomic Medicine Service)
Membership roles are not remunerated but Genomics England will cover reasonable travel and accommodation expenses for in-person meetings.
What does it involve?
The ARC meets 4 times per year for a 2-to-3-hour meeting, including one in-person meeting per year, and undertakes discussions and approvals via an online system as well. We expect the time commitment to be equivalent to approximately one day per month, on an initial 3-year term (with the possibility of extending for a further term).
How to apply
If you are interested in applying to become a member of the ARC, please send an email to [email protected] with the following:
- Your name, affiliations and contact details
- Your CV
- A cover letter of no more than 400 words setting out:
- Why you’d like to join the Committee
- What skills and experience you’d bring to the Committee (see above for specific areas of expertise we’re particularly interested in)
The closing date for membership applications is 10 December. We may contact you for a follow-up call if your application is shortlisted.
Dr Christine Patch
Chair of the Access Review Committee
Natasha Dunkley
Head of Digital Strategy, Welsh Government
Helen White
Vice-Chair for Cancer
Clarissa Hopkins
Participant Panel member
Dr Simon Stockley
General Practitioner
Dr Shereen Tadros
Consultant in Clinical Genetics, GOSH
Danielle Wilson
Centre and Research Commercialisation Manager, Imperial College
Kirsty Irvine
Chair of the Participant Panel
Research Network Committee
The Research Network Committee oversees the operation of the Research Network and includes a range of representatives from across the Research Network communities. Three places on the Research Network Committee are reserved for the representatives of the Participant Panel and they contribute and vote as any other member of the Research Network Committee. The individual Participant Panel representatives are free to rotate attendance at the Research Network Committee according to their availability.
Dr Helen Bulbeck
Participant Panel member
Mel Dixon
Participant Panel member
Professor Dame Sue Hill
NHS England
Dave McCormick
Participant Panel member
Professor John Sayer
Deputy Chair and Research representative
Dr Nicky Whiffin
Quantitative Genomics representative
Dr Catherine Taylor
Clinical representative
Dr Letizia Vestito
Early Career Researcher representative
Professor Claude Chelala
Data Science representative
Dr William Macken
Early Career Researcher representative
Research Network Community Leads
Our Research Network Community Leads spearhead, represent and advise the 8 cross-functional communities that make up our Research Network. Championing their respective community interests, the leads engage with Genomics England to identify strategic research and funding opportunities.
The Community Leads drive collaborations, skill-sharing and meaningful interactions between members of their communities, streamlining the way genomic research is carried out.
Professor Richard Houlston
Pan-Cancer and Molecular Oncology lead
Professor Anna Schuh
Pan-Cancer and Molecular Oncology co-lead
Professor Elijah Behr
Predisposition and Screening lead
Professor Sanjay Sisodiya
Predisposition and Screening co-lead
Professor Sophie Hambleton
Variant Discovery and Clinical Interpretation lead
Professor Christopher Yau
Bioinformatics and Machine Learning lead
Dr David Morris
Bioinformatics and machine learning co-lead
Professor Daniel Gale
Therapeutic Innovations and Trials lead
Professor Haiyan Zhou
Therapeutic Innovations and Trials co-lead
Dr Aylwyn Scally
Population Genomics lead
Professor Jean-Baptiste Cazier
Population Genomics co-lead
Professor Amy Jayne McKnight
Implementation and Data Enhancement co-lead
Professor Diana Baralle
Genotype-Phenotype Association lead
Dr Gavin Arno
Genotype-Phenotype Association co-lead
Professor Matt Lechner
Pan-Cancer and Molecular Oncology co-lead
Professor Claude Chelala
Variant Discovery and Clinical Interpretation co-lead
Dr Alisdair McNeill
Variant Discovery and Clinical Interpretation co-lead
Dr Dominik Glodzik
Bioinformatics and Machine Learning co-lead
Professor Jenny Taylor
Therapeutic Innovations and Trials co-lead
Dr Hywel Williams
Genotype-Phenotype Association co-lead
Professor Claire Shovlin
Implementation and Data Enhancement lead
Dr James Buchanan
Implementation and Data Enhancement co-lead
Professor Patricia Munroe
Population Genomics co-lead
Dr Hilary Martin
Population Genomics co-lead
Professor Gianpiero Cavalleri
Predisposition and Screening co-lead