Cardiff elects Innovation Fellows

Cardiff University has appointed three Innovation Fellows in recognition of their outstanding work to grow lasting University partnerships.

The new honorary title has been bestowed on leaders from organisations that work closely with the University to develop innovation across the Cardiff Capital Region and beyond.

The recipients are:

• Robyn Walton-Davies, Head of Innovation at Cardiff and Vale University Health Board (C&VUHB) and former manager of the South East Wales Academic Health Science Partnership;
• Peter Fullerton, former Director of Data Collection at the Office for National Statistics (ONS) who chaired strategic partnership meetings between ONS and the University, and sits on the Data Science Academy advisory board;
• Clive Morgan, Deputy Director of Therapies and Health Science and Managing Director of the All Wales Medical Genomics service at C&VUHB.

Welcoming the appointments, Professor Kim Graham, Pro Vice-Chancellor Research, Innovation and Enterprise, said: “We are delighted to honour our inaugural Innovation Fellows for their tireless work to build partnerships by chairing groups, establishing panels, drawing support from industry and attracting public and private sector funding."

Robyn Walton-Davies is passionate about Welsh Entrepreneurship and has been a volunteer mentor at the Alacrity Foundation from its inception. He is a visiting Professor at USW, Fellow of the Royal Society for Public Health and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. He is also Chair of CulturVate, supported by Wesley Clover.

"As a Cardiff psychology graduate and business school postgraduate, I am delighted to receive this honorary title,” said Robyn.” Through the long-standing support of the School of Medicine, it recognises the critical importance of our clinical Innovation partnership in supporting the sustainability of our health service.”

Prior to his recent retirement, Peter Fullerton spent 18 years at ONS, holding senior roles in business delivery and leading innovative development programmes. As Director of Data Collection, he was responsible for teams totalling over 1,800 people. He also served as Deputy Director for ONS’s Data Science Campus from its inception. Prior to joining ONS, Peter worked at Welsh Government/Welsh Office in a range of senior statistical and public policy leadership roles.

Peter said “I’m delighted to be given this opportunity to advance data innovation in collaboration with the University following my role in establishing the successful strategic partnership with ONS over the past few years. It’s a really exciting time for the University to enhance its strong reputation for data innovation through initiatives like the Data Innovation Research Institute and SPARK.”

Clive Morgan has a track record of working with Cardiff University and C&VUHB colleagues on collaborations with global healthcare corporations including Roche, GE Healthcare and Siemens through the Clinical Innovation Partnership, and has helped the University establish key links with NHS groups including the NHS Wales Health Collaborative, National Pathology Network and Point of Care Testing Strategy Group that has enabled other joint funding bids.

“I am absolutely honoured to be afforded this exciting opportunity to further strengthen innovation partnership working between Cardiff and Vale UHB, NHS Wales and Cardiff University, particularly in the fields of healthcare science and precision medicine,” said Clive.

“I am also very much looking forward to continuing the ongoing work with brilliant Cardiff University colleagues to grow collaborative working relationships with industry partners. It is our shared ambition to make the Cardiff Capital Region a globally significant innovation hub for integrated diagnostics.”

In addition to formally recognising the contribution that many individuals make to the University, an Innovation Fellowship confers support from the University’s Innovation Network and access to library and IT services.