Senior Researcher Dr Joanna Crocker has been appointed as one of three Chief Scientific Advisors to the Local Policy Lab, a partnership between the University of Oxford, Oxford Brookes University and Oxfordshire County Council.
Joanna will lead a three-year research programme under the theme 'Ensuring a healthy standard of living for all', working closely with policymakers and communities to address health inequalities across the county.
The Local Policy Lab was founded in 2024 to bridge the gap between academic research and local policymaking. The alliance brings together Oxford's two universities and local government to support evidence-based responses to some of Oxfordshire's most pressing challenges – with a particular focus on the socio-economic factors that shape health, such as housing, employment and access to services.
The Lab's work is organised around three priority themes aligned with the Marmot framework for reducing health inequalities: delivering a skilled workforce and fair employment, ensuring a healthy standard of living for all, and enabling children and young people to thrive. Each of the newly appointed Chief Scientific Advisors will take responsibility for one of these themes.
Read the full story on the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences website.