OUR PEOPLE

I captain the Rocket Science Ship, aided and supported by a wonderful and passionate team who want to achieve social impact in all that we do. I lead on strategy and business development, focussing on innovating and new and better ways to do our work. I oversee the policies and processes in the organisation and involved in our projects as a critical friend or project director. As a lived experience leader and having followed an unconventional route into this sector I bring real-life experience, pragmatism and a commitment to the best do possible work for you, the people you support and society.

The main focus of my work at Rocket Science is ensuring that our people have opportunities to develop their skills and deepen their policy interests to best support our clients and communities. My role on projects is about shaping our approach and methodology, ensuring that the insights we generate are practical, robust and tailored to enable action. I prioritise listening and collaboration with clients and value that each project is completely bespoke. Alongside my role as Director, I chair the Research and Evaluation Network for London Funders which brings together individuals from across the funder community to learn and share.

Hey, I’m Maddy. My role is all about using robust and in-depth research to help organisations better understand how to develop and hone strategic approaches to maximise their real-world impacts and address inequalities. By building understanding of the causes of social challenges through research and evaluation, my work supports organisations to develop preventative strategic approaches. Influenced by systems and place-based thinking, I know the challenges in researching complexity and getting organisations to align their approaches. I have developed a whole host of ways to work through difficult challenges and understand ways forward, that build on partnership and trust.

I joined Rocket Science at the end of 2021 as part of the Finance team, bringing a strong background in finance and business administration. Since then, I have had the opportunity to grow with the organisation, taking on increasing responsibilities before becoming a Director and member of the Executive Team in 2026. At Rocket Science, my focus is on making sure the business runs smoothly and sustainably so that our teams can concentrate on delivering meaningful outcomes for our clients. As a Director with responsibility for Finance and Business Management, I oversee the financial health of the organisation, support strategic decision-making, and help shape how we work. I love bringing together financial insight, business planning, and practical problem-solving to help turn ideas into reality. Whether I’m improving internal processes, supporting colleagues, or helping inform strategic direction, my goal is always the same: to create the conditions for great work and lasting impact.

At Rocket Science, I lead our evaluation and impact work, helping organisations generate and use credible evidence about impact and value to make better decisions. Within this, I lead our quantitative evaluation, analytics and value for money offer, and I also lead our violence reduction and prevention work. My expertise spans mixed methods evaluation, quasi-experimental design, respondent-centred survey research, and the analysis and use of monitoring, administrative and public data. I connect important questions with the right methods and evidence, helping organisations understand change, make proportionate claims about impact, and use learning to strengthen delivery, strategy and investment.

I work with clients to build evidence, understand their impact and support decision-making about programmes, funding and strategy. Across projects, I enjoy trying to understand complex and nuanced challenges, experiences and mechanisms of impact. I do this through qualitative research and evaluation, evidence and literature reviews and synthesising information into clear narratives and recommendations. I frequently work on projects involving sensitive topics and inequalities and am committed to using trauma-informed, ethical and safeguarding approaches to engage with vulnerable and often unheard groups.

I help clients understand people’s experiences, attitudes and behaviours, and turn that insight into practical change. At Rocket Science, my work focuses on qualitative research, evaluation, stakeholder engagement across public and third sector organisations, with particular experience in mental health, drugs and alcohol, children and young people and service improvement. I am passionate in creating safe, inclusive spaces where people can share their honest opinions, bringing together interviews, workshops, focus groups, surveys and evidence into clear findings, recommendations and action plans – to better support policy development, service design and outcomes for all.

Hi, I’m Elektra. I lead research and evaluation projects across education, youth and community services. I specialise in creating safe, inclusive ways for people with lived experience, including children and young people, to shape research and influence the decisions that affect them. My work combines mixed-methods evaluation with participatory and safeguarding-aware approaches, helping clients understand how programmes are delivered, what difference they make and how they can improve. Drawing on six years as a primary school teacher, I understand how policies and programmes land in practice and how to turn people’s experiences and complex evidence into clear, practical learning.

I support research and evaluation projects across a range of sectors, including transport, children and young people, violence reduction and philanthropy. A big part of my role involves getting out and about, meeting people and talking through their experiences to understand how initiatives work, the difference they make, and where they could be improved even more. Back at my laptop, I translate this lived insight into inclusive and accessible reports or recommendations that inform future policy and project development. I also carry out literature and evidence reviews and make sure fieldwork runs smoothly.

Hi, I’m Zubiya. I use quantitative research, economic analysis, and evaluation to help organisations make sense of complex data and make better decisions. At Rocket Science, I support clients to understand what is changing, why it matters, and how they can maximise their impact. From designing monitoring frameworks and improving data collection approaches to conducting statistical analysis and creating clear, engaging visualisations, I enjoy turning evidence into practical insights and recommendations that drive action.

I work on different aspects of grants programmes to ensure they run smoothly for clients and grantees. I review ongoing monitoring reports, hold meetings with grantees to discuss any changes required, collate final data and learnings about the progress the projects have made across the lifetime of their respective grants. A great part of monitoring and evaluation is learning about a project’s growth and development over the duration of the project, all the way to completion. Many grantees have exceeded the targets they set for themselves and have made such significant positive impacts on the young people they worked with.

At Rocket Science, I started as an intern, working a few days a week whilst finishing my degree. I got stuck in and helped out with whatever a project needs. This ranged from contact mapping, distributing surveys, in-person engagement, leading interviews and focus groups, theme coding, research framework design, research tool design. I’ve since been brought on as a full time consultant, and I’m excited to get more involved with projects and further develop my skills in engagement.

My work focuses on making connections and building partnerships between the different elements of civil society; bringing the best out of government, charities, voluntary sector organisations, independent funders and responsible businesses, often with a place-based focus. I have led numerous strategic reviews and programme evaluations for trusts and foundations, including the John Lyon’s Foundation, Westminster Foundation, the Wimbledon Foundation (All England Lawn Tennis Club), Pilgrim Trust and City Bridge Foundation. I have a particular interest in civic philanthropy and its contribution to spotlighting need and effecting social change, and regularly write on funding matters.

I am passionate about reducing inequalities and improving people’s health and wellbeing. I review existing evidence and undertake new research to provide actionable learning for policy and practice. I have over 25 years’ experience of whole system approaches and progressing evidence-informed actions to address complex social challenges. I have particular expertise in developing actions to better prevent and mitigate childhood adversity and trauma across the life-course. I support organisations to implement trauma-informed approaches. I enjoy working collaboratively with partners to help navigate complex challenges, identify outcomes and progress informed positive change.

I lead on grantmaking strategy and management supporting a range of funders to optimise processes, ensure compliance, and amplify the positive outcomes of every grant awarded. I am passionate about developing test and learn approaches and building relational relationships. This includes breaking down traditional barriers for applicants, seeing small projects shine and sharing knowledge and expertise with funders and charities, to support future resilience and strategies, reaching many people in our country, particularly with early-stage interventions. Funders can become an instrument to shift power and strengthen communities and it’s our job to facilitate this and make it happen!

As an associate with Rocket Science, I join the team for projects on apprenticeships, employment, skills and AI. I’m a senior research and policy consultant, focused on qualitative research, translating research findings into actionable policy and practice, and helping teams to find strategic ways forward. I work with regional and local government, civil society organisations and charities, research institutes and academia.

With 15 years of data expertise across planning, collection, analysis, and communication, I help organisations unlock insights for social impact. My background spans evaluation and grantmaking, including roles at the King’s Trust, New Philanthropy Capital, Imperial Health Charity, and Masonic Charitable Foundation. As a consultant, I have supported a diverse portfolio of funders, museums, campaigns, health charities, and grassroots groups. Committed to advancing the sector, I also co-chair London Funders’ research and evaluation network and chair the 360Giving Data Standard Stewardship Committee. I bring actionable, data-driven strategy to every consultancy project.

I am an Associate Research Consultant at Rocket Science, with an MSc in Criminology and Social Research Methods (distinction). I am an experienced research, evaluation and impact consultant, combining methodological design with analytical expertise and practitioner insight. I deliver high-quality consultancy for charities and social impact organisations, engaging diverse audiences including community groups, families and leadership teams to gather robust data and facilitate meaningful consultation. I am experienced in synthesising a range of data sources to produce accessible reports and actionable recommendations. My work helps clients strengthen service design, evidence impact, communicate learning and make decisions about future programme delivery.

James is Director at Jamesturner.work Ltd – he is a highly experienced social researcher, specialising in data analysis. James is based in Northumberland and works across the UK with clients from the public sector, the voluntary and community sector and grant-making organisations. He has over 20 years of experience in senior policy and grant-funding roles. He is also the joint chair of a local Northumberland charity.