Speaker Details

Angela Polanco

National Head of Public Partnerships, NIHR RDN, NIHR RDN

As the National Head of Public Partnerships at the The National Institute of Health and Care Research Research Delivery Network Coordinating Centre (NIHR RDNCC), Angela is passionate about building meaningful, lasting relationships with the public, resulting in impactful, positive change, with a focus on co-production and transparency. Starting her career as a midwife, she quickly transitioned into research delivery, earning her Masters and PhD exploring methods of communication about risk for adult childhood cancer survivors during pregnancy and birth. Beyond her professional role, she’s a dedicated parent advocate and an international PPIE representative for childhood cancer research, working closely with national policy makers, government officials, and research charities. She was able to bring this passion for public involvement and health research to Our Future Health as their PPIE Lead, before joining NIHR in 2022. Angela leads a dynamic national team, helping to embed public voice across research delivery and working in collaboration with the public, patients, stakeholders and underserved communities on national projects such as Be Part of Research and the Participant in Research Experience Survey (PRES).