Dr Simon Christmas

Simon is an independent social researcher with extensive experience of delivering projects for public and private sector clients. Specifically, Simon helps clients to understand behaviour and engagement from the perspective of the agent – the target audience, consumer, service user or citizen – in order to develop better policies, strategies, products, services, propositions or behaviour change interventions.

Public and third sector projects include:

• Current work for Defra to develop resources to support Directors of Public Health in communicating the health impacts of poor air quality to local decision-makers and communities.
• A mixed-methods study for Defra to identify ways of framing biodiversity issues which can lead to increased public engagement with the topic.
• A series of research projects for the Department of Transport, including work for the Think! Campaign, on topics such as young drivers and pre-drivers, seatbelt wearing, motorcyclists, cyclists, van drivers, freight drivers, and environmentally-friendly driving.
• Work with patients, public, staff and senior stakeholders, for the Department of Health, to develop national values for the NHS as part of the NHS Constitution, building on previous research into ‘What matters to patients’.
• Research with Shelter to understand motivations for engagement with issues around homelessness and housing need, as the basis for a highly successful communications and campaigning platform. (This work won the 2012 MRS Award for New Consumer Insights.)

Simon holds a BA, MPhil and PhD in Philosophy, a BSc in Psychology, and an MA in Creative Writing. He is a Full Member of the Market Research Society and a Graduate Member of the British Psychological Society.