The Institute is led by Professor Andrew Livingston and Professor Jim Naismith, as joint interim academic leads. Together, they are responsible for the formation of the Institute, engagement with the academic and industrial communities, and the design and delivery of the hub building.
Each of the five themes are led by experts from within the academic community, working with a theme advisory panel which brings together both academic and industrial community members.
To contact any of the team, including the theme leaders, please e-mail info@rfi.ac.uk and we will put you in touch.
Institute Team
Professor Andrew Livingston
Interim Director
Andrew was born in Taranaki, New Zealand and studied Chemical Engineering at the University of Canterbury in NZ. Following graduation, he worked for three years at an NZ food processing company, gaining industrial experience of chemical engineering. Between 1986 and […]
Professor James Naismith
Interim Academic Lead
Professor Naismith grew up in Hamilton, in the west of Scotland attending local state schools. He graduated from Edinburgh in 1989 with a BSc in Chemistry. As a Carnegie scholar, Professor Naismith obtained a PhD in Structural Biochemistry from Manchester […]
Tim Venables
Chief Operating Officer
Tim is seconded from Imperial College to lead the Establishment and Operational Development of the Rosalind Franklin Institute. Prior to joining the Institute he was Operations Manager for the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Imperial College, where he oversaw all […]
Laura Holland
Director of Communications and Culture
Laura Holland is Director of Communications at the Rosalind Franklin Institute. She has been with the organisation since its conception. Prior to this, she was Engagement Manager at Diamond Light Source for eleven years, where she led public engagement and postgraduate engagement programmes. […]
Joanne Blowers
Office Operations Manager
Joanne is Office Operations Manager to the Rosalind Franklin Institute team, working with the Chief Operating Officer and Director of Communications to deliver the day-to-day running of the Institute. She has a background in administration and HR, and has run […]
Theme Leaders
Professor James Naismith
University of Oxford
Professor Naismith grew up in Hamilton, in the west of Scotland attending local state schools. He graduated from Edinburgh in 1989 with a BSc in Chemistry. As a Carnegie scholar, Professor Naismith obtained a PhD in Structural Biochemistry from Manchester […]
Professor Adam Nelson
University of Leeds
Professor Adam Nelson is Theme Lead for Next Generation Chemistry for Medicine at the Rosalind Franklin Institute, Professor of Chemical Biology at the University of Leeds, and Deputy Director of the Astbury Centre for Structural Molecular Biology. He obtained his PhD […]
Professor Angus Kirkland
University of Oxford
Angus Kirkland completed his MA and PhD at the University of Cambridge using high resolution electron microscopy to study the structures of colloidal metals. Following a post-doctoral Fellowship Angus was elected to the Ramsay Memorial Trust Research Fellowship and subsequently […]
Professor Perdita Barran
University of Manchester
Professor Perdita Barran
University of Manchester
Professor Perdita Barran is Chair of Mass Spectrometry in the School of Chemistry and Director of the Michael Barber Centre for Collaborative Mass Spectrometry. She graduated from Manchester University with a degree in Chemistry with Industrial Experience (1994), and from […]
Professor Kathryn Lilley
University of Cambridge
Professor Kathryn Lilley
University of Cambridge
Professor Kathryn Lilley received her PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Sheffield in 1990. She continued her scientific career as a laboratory manager for 11 years at the University of Leicester where she ran the Protein and Nucleic Acid […]
Professor Ron Roy
University of Oxford
Professor Ron Roy is Theme Leader in Imaging with Sound and Light at the Rosalind Franklin Institute, and Chair of Mechanical Engineering and Associate Head of Department (research) in the Dept. of Engineering Science at the University of Oxford. He […]