Three Manchester academics appointed to UK Research and Innovation
08 Apr 2025
Nancy Rothwell, Cecilia Wong and Jayne Lawrence are council members for UKRI, which provides investment and support for the country’s researchers and business.
Three Manchester academics have been announced as UKRI council members.
Our former President and Vice-Chancellor, Professor Dame Nancy Rothwell DBE has been announced as a Medical Research Council member, Professor Cecilia Wong as an Economic and Social Research Council member and Professor Jayne Lawrence MBE as a Science and Technology Facilities Council member.
The UKRI provides investment and support for researchers and businesses – improving capabilities across the research system, within the UK and internationally, developing world-class infrastructure and supporting an inclusive and ethical research culture.
It helps researchers develop new skills, enabling them to further their careers, and enables collaboration and engagement across and beyond our communities, involving the wider public.
There are nine councils, each is led by an Executive Chair and advised by a council of external members from the academic community, business, civil and public sector. The councils work with their research and innovation communities and wider stakeholders to develop and implement delivery plans that contribute to delivering our strategic objectives.
Professor Nancy Rothwell was President and Vice-Chancellor July 2010 to July 2024, the first woman to lead the University or either of its two predecessor institutions. Nancy is now our Campaign and External Relations Ambassador and an Emeritus Professor. A Professor of Physiology, she has previously held an MRC Research Chair and her work in the field of neuroscience has contributed towards major advances in the understanding and treatment of brain damage in stroke and head injury. She was elected Fellow of the Royal Society in June 2004 and made Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in June 2005, in recognition of her services to science.
Professor Cecilia Wong is Professor of Spatial Planning, Co-Director of Policy@Manchester and Director of the Spatial Policy and Analysis Lab here at Manchester. She is a chartered town planner and had practice experience in Liverpool City Council and Cleveland County Council before joining academia. A Fellow of both the Academy of Social Sciences and the Royal Town Planning Institute, she currently chairs the UK2070 Commission, an independent inquiry into city and regional inequalities in the United Kingdom. Additionally, she is a member of the National Infrastructure Commission’s Levelling Up Advisory Panel and has previously contributed to the Lyons Independent Housing Review. Her advisory roles extend internationally, having advised the European Commission on the Urban Audit II and UN-Habitat on the City Prosperity Index.
Professor Jayne Lawrence is Director of the University of Manchester at Harwell, which enables our researchers to perform excellent, impactful science using National Facilities. Prior to this, Jayne was Head of the Division of Pharmacy and Optometry here at Manchester and Professor and Head of the Pharmaceutical Biophysics Group at King’s College London, concurrently serving as Chief Scientist at the Royal Pharmaceutical Society. She was awarded an MBE in the 2020 Queen’s Birthday honours for her services to pharmaceutical research.