A heartfelt thanks to all those who nominated colleagues for awards, to the nominees themselves, the judging panels and the organisers of the event. And many congratulations to those who were shortlisted and won awards. The awards highlight the extraordinary talent, energy and dedication we enjoy from across IoPPN. There were many stories of teams and individuals who go the extra mile to make our working environment collaborative and supportive, and in so doing bringing impact well beyond the university, from inspiring sixth formers in our outreach programmes, to educational initiatives which ensure students hear from people with lived experience of mental disorders, to developing new treatments for hallucinations. The breadth of achievement is truly inspirational.
Professor Matthew Hotopf, IoPPN Executive Dean
11 July 2025
Celebrating our staff at the IoPPN Awards 2025
The first Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN) Awards took place on 09 July 2025, celebrating the achievements, dedication and contributions of staff across four categories: Education, Professional & Technical Services, Research and the Dean’s Special Awards.
With over 470 nominations, 48 individuals or teams were shortlisted for 15 awards. The winners were announced at a special awards ceremony hosted by Professor Matthew Hotopf, IoPPN Executive Dean, and we’re delighted to announce the winners (and shortlisted nominees) below.
Education Category (presented by Professor Cathy Fernandes)
Innovations in Undergraduate Education Award
Winner: Professor Michael Aitken-Deacon, Professor of Experimental Psychology
Shortlisted: Dr Rebecca Upsher, Professor Richard Wingate
Innovations in Postgraduate Education Award
Winner: Dr Udita Iyengar, David Lewis, and The Lived Experience Perspective Module Co-Production Team, Lived Experience Perspective MSc module
Shortlisted: Dr Alessandra Borsini, Dr Gemma Knowles
Outstanding contribution to student experience (professional services staff) Award
Winner: Jonathan Nassar, Student Experience Manager
Shortlisted: Paige Lewis, Charlotte Wilson
Outstanding contribution to student experience (academic staff) Award
Winners: Dr Vincent Giampetro, Reader in Neuroscience Education & Dr Brenda Williams, Reader in Experimental Neuropathology (Education)
Shortlisted: Professor Alice Egerton, Dr Radhika Kandaswamy
Professional & Technical Services (presented by Richard Barnard)
Professional Services Education Administration or Research Administration Award
Winner: School of Mental Health & Psychological Sciences Research Cluster (Hannah Collier, Olivier Delacroix, Ruth Fernandes, Vanessa Frederick, Nawaf Ibrahim (lead), Chuotong (Joyce) Huang, Damian Kippins, Ramsha Malik, Audrey Morgan, Natalia Okele (lead), Louise Webster)
Shortlisted: Molly Payne, Sam Stewart, Naomi Strauss, Caroline Wooldridge
Outstanding Professional Services Award
Winner: Hannah Warren, Senior Events Officer
Shortlisted: Lauren Moult, School Communications Managers (Milly Remmington, Annora Thoeng, Emily Webb), Doctorate in Clinical Psychology Administration Team (Rebecca Alonso, Mark Ballham (lead), Ravi Jollyman, Heather Newbold, Kayleigh Rawlings),
Outstanding Technical Services Award
Winner: Carlos Roncancio-Garcia, Deputy Resource Manager, Centre for Developmental Neurobiology
Shortlisted: MRI Support Team (Kailash Ganesh, Nauman Hafeez, Simon Hill, Nigel Jones, Maryla Kaminska, Rodney Lewis, Stephanie Stephensons, Chris Webb), Wohl Technical team (David Dempster, Kate Grant (lead), Krzysztof Falkowski, Arnold (Carl) Leckstrom)
Research Category (presented by Professor Sandrine Thuret)
Collaborative Research Excellence Award
Winner: Professor Ammar Al-Chalabi and UK MND Research Institute research team
Shortlisted: Professor Jayati Das-Munshi and Dr Josephine Ocloo, STAR (Study of Trauma And Recovery) Trial Team (Professor Sarah Byford, Prof Richard Emsley, Dr Amy Hardy, Professor Emmanuelle Peters (PI))
Research Guidance and Mentorship Award
Winner: Professor Gemma Modinos, Professor of Neuroscience & Mental Health
Shortlisted: Professor Gareth Barker, Professor Alice Egerton
Research Impact Award
Winner: Lived Experience Advisory Board (LEAB) (Rick Burgess, Raza Griffiths, Rachel Hill, James Lane, Cassandra Lovelock, Professor Craig Morgan (lead), Bwalya Mulenga, Janahan Sivanathan, Dr Rhea Sookdeosingh, Dr Angie Sweeney, Sonia Thompson)
Shortlisted: English National Learning Disability Mortality Review Programme (LeDeR), Professor Ulrike Schmidt
Research Innovation Award
Winner: AVATAR Team (Emeritus Professor Tom Craig (PI), Dr Clementine Edwards, Emeritus Professor Philippa Garety (PI), Dr Thomas Ward)
(NB, no other shortlisted nominees)
Early Career Researcher Achievement Award
Winners: Dr Amy Hardy, Senior Lecturer & Dr Bethany Oakley, Postdoctoral Research Associate
Shortlisted: Dr Cathy Davies, Dr Johanna Keeler, Dr Toby Pillinger, Dr Gavin Stewart
Executive Dean's Special Awards (presented by Professor Matthew Hotopf)
Outreach and Public Engagement Award
Winner: Dr Leigh Wilson, Public Engagement Manager, Centre for Developmental Neurobiology
Shortlisted: Celestine Lockhart and Dr Yasmin Ahmadzadeh
Championing an Inclusive, Fair, Equal & Diverse Faculty Award
Winner: Zoe Kennedy, Senior Culture, Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Manager
Shortlisted: Dr Darren Williams and Sashagale Henry
Outstanding Citizenship Award
Winner: Professor Gareth Barker, Professor of Magnetic Resonance Physics/Associate Dean for Doctoral Studies
Shortlisted: Professor Sarah Byford, Professor Juliet Foster
Being part of the IoPPN Awards this year was both an honour and a real joy! From the first planning meeting to the final round of applause, it was all about celebrating the incredible people who make this place what it is! I’m so thankful to everyone who helped bring it to life - our selection panels, communications teams and every hand that helped make this celebration possible, and of course, the colleagues who took the time to nominate others. Reading through nominations was genuinely moving - it really showed the kindness, appreciation, and support that make IoPPN such a special community!
Judith Pramsohler, IoPPN Awards Lead
You can read more about who was nominated and why here. Below is short selection of photos from the event.
Congratulation to all nominees, and thank you to everyone who attended the ceremony.
