Helen Grindell

Helen started her career in research in 2001 as a Research Officer for a mental health charity undertaking research into the employment experiences, needs and aspirations of people with severe mental health problems, which later became the topic of her MPhil from Swansea University in 2008.

Since then, she has worked in many varied national research & development roles in the third sector, private sector, in government and in the NHS. Helen has managed a European action research programme to tackle inequality and discrimination in the workplace, as well as managed a national primary care research network in Wales. She has also spent some time in a policy role in Welsh Government leading on the primary care research & development strategy for Wales.

Helen has worked in the English research & development infrastructure, as the Lead Research Management & Governance Manager for the Western Comprehensive Local Research Network, and then later as the Senior Manager, leading the creation, management and development of the network.

Returning to Wales in 2010, Helen became the Senior Manager of the Academic Health Science Collaboration and then in 2015, she led the implementation, delivery and management of the Support Centre. Helen has been in her current national role as the Head of the Support & Delivery Centre since 2015, where she oversees the Support & Delivery Centre’s 12 functions and services.

Helen is the Head of the Support & Delivery Centre which is one of the Health and Care Research Wales initiatives funded by Welsh Government’s Research and Development Division.

In the news: 

Consultation on the content of the draft NHS R&D Framework (May 2023)

An exciting future with the appointment of new ENRICH Cymru research manager (April 2022)

New website launched to promote value of clinical academic careers (October 2021)