The Centre for Public Engagement

The Centre for Public Engagement was first established in 2012 to help support Queen Mary staff and students integrate public engagement into their work. Today we remain committed to supporting our staff, students, and the local community throughout their public engagement journey.

Building on the success of our 2021 ‘Platinum Engage Watermark’ awarded by the NCCPE, we aim to enhance our support for public engagement across the University, and broaden our work with communities locally, nationally and internationally to engage with new groups whilst also strengthening the connections we already have.

The CPE works to embed public engagement within the university by:

• Removing barriers to engagement through providing advice and support, training, and providing funding for staff and students at Queen Mary
• Celebrating the excellent work underway
• Advocating for an engaged Queen Mary
• Building relationships within the local community
• Championing the need for engaged universities at a national level

You can contact us at any point to discuss all aspects of engagement and to receive further information on how to access our support services. The CPE has a core team of four members of staff who are here to help.

Contact Us:

The CPE Team:

Audrey Tan
Head of Public Engagement

Audrey is the Head of Public Engagement and leads the CPE to embed public engagement across the university and deliver significant and impactful public engagement. Previously, Audrey was the Policy Partnerships Manager at Queen Mary's Mile End Institute where she was responsible for developing the university's capacity and reputation for public policy engagement.

A research methodologist by training, Audrey previously worked for the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), Cochrane, and the World Health Organisation (WHO), conducting systematic reviews of clinical evidence to inform policy decision-making. Before joining QMUL, Audrey worked at University College London for the Public Policy and Public Engagement teams respectively, supporting academics to translate their research into real world impact. 

Audrey has a BA (Hons) in Health Studies and Gerontology from McMaster University, Canada, and an MSc in Evidence-Based Social Intervention and Policy Evaluation from the University of Oxford. 

Ife Akinroyeje
Community Engagement Manager

Ife is the Community Engagement Manager and leads on Queen Mary's local community engagement. She works with a wide range of community groups, organisations and charities in Tower Hamlets and east London, to connect them to the breadth of projects, research and teaching taking place at Queen Mary. She connects Queen Mary staff and students to the wealth of knowledge, expertise and opportunities in our local communities with the aim of generating new connections, partnerships and mutually beneficial working.

Ife also leads on the annual Festival of Communities, a leading event in Tower Hamlets which brings residents, community organisations and Queen Mary staff and students together to explore living and learning in the borough.

Briana Applewhite

Health Inequalities Research & Partnerships Manager

Briana is the Health Inequalities Research & Partnerships Manager, as part of the Tower Hamlets NIHR funded Health Determinants Research Collaborative (HDRC).  Her role focuses on building and maintaining relationships with the local council, different community organisations and the wider university sector, connecting them to research and opportunities with the overarching goal of improving health inequalities within the borough of Tower Hamlets.

Briana has a vested interest in health inequalities research and has previously worked as a Researcher on a multitude of studies focused on improving the mental health outcomes of diverse communities.

She has an MSc in Mental Health Studies from King’s College London and is currently working on her PhD at the University of Oxford in Psychiatry.

Rose de Lara

Public Engagement Manager

Rose de Lara is Public Engagement Manager and leads on the CPE's Training Programme, as well as building networks and events across QM to promote and share practice in public engagement.  

Previously Rose was Public Engagement Officer at the School of Advanced Study, University of London, where she worked across Being Human Festival, the UK's national festival of the humanities, working with researchers and staff across the UK, as well as supporting public engagement across the School. 

Prior to that Rose worked in participation and engagement in a range of arts and cultural organisations including festivals, arts centres and galleries, and worked with artists, young people and communities on engagement projects and initiatives. 

Rose is passionate about democratising access to knowledge, opening up research and developing creative and innovative engagement methods. 

Rose has a BA(Hons) in History of Art from Goldsmiths, University of London. 

Aoife Sadlier

Participatory Research Officer

Aoife Sadlier is the Participatory Research Officer at CPE. In this role, she supports, trains, and co-ordinates funding for researchers seeking to undertake participatory research.

Previously, Aoife worked as a postdoctoral researcher on participatory projects related to sport, culture and education for sustainable development (‘New Development Frontiers’, ESRC, Loughborough University) and user/survivor-led mental health (‘EURIKHA’, Wellcome Trust, King’s College London). She holds a PhD from the Department of Culture, Media and Creative Industries, King’s College London.

In addition to her role at CPE, Aoife is a Lecturer in Sustainability in Practice at MLA College (in partnership with University of Plymouth) and an academic editor. She is also a fiction writer. Aoife is currently working on a novel about a young queer woman’s search for joy in the aftermath of loss, narrated by a motley crew of myth-defying animals, and a short story collection, inspired by magical realism.

Maja Wawrzynowicz  

Engagement and Communications Officer  

As the Engagement and Communications Officer, Maja is the first point of contact for enquiries about the CPE's services. She manages the CPE's Small Grant schemes, provides advice and guidance for public engagement projects, and manages the CPE's communication channels. 

Maja is a third-year undergraduate student at Queen Mary University of London, studying International Relations and Business Management. She gained work experience through internships at the Mile End Institute (MEI), where she learned about policy work and expanded her professional network within Queen Mary University, as well as Deloitte, in the financial advisory department.

In addition to her role at the Centre for Public Engagement, Maja is the President of the F1 Society at the university and volunteers as a Senior Student Ambassador at Chatham House. She intends to further her studies with a master's degree in Diplomacy or Political Science.

In memoriam: Professor Peter McOwan

Queen Mary’s Vice Principal for Public Engagement and Student Enterprise, Professor Peter McOwan passed away in 2019. Peter was instrumental in setting up the Centre for Public Engagement and his leadership and guidance led to Queen Mary being the first institution to be awarded a Gold Engage Watermark for Public Engagement in 2016.

Peter was posthumously awarded the Queen Mary Medal for his exceptional contribution to Queen Mary and his legacy is reflected in the outstanding public engagement projects delivered by staff and students, as well as the work of the Centre for Public Engagement.

In 2021, the 'McOwan Award for Leadership in Public Engagement' was introduced as one of the categories in the Engagement and Impact Awards to commemorate Peter's qualities of inspirational and transformational leadership and his passion for engagement.