CIEH Public Health Protection Conference

Alison Guscott, Senior Smoke-Free Advisor, Change Grow Live (CGL). Alison is a Senior Smokefree Advisor at CGL (Change Grow Live), where she has led the design, delivery and evaluation of a smoking cessation programme tailored to people with complex needs. By embedding this service within a drug and alcohol setting, she has significantly improved access for those who need it most. Co-production and collaboration sit at the heart of Alison's approach to reducing health inequality. She holds a first-class degree in Psychology and brings a diverse professional background spanning finance and public health. She is committed to building a career where evidence-based practice and compassion go hand in hand.

Professor Dominic Mellon, Deputy Director for Health Protection in Regions, UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA). Dominic is a public health specialist, Senior Civil Servant, and Visiting Professor at the University of the West of England.  He is a dynamic national system leader who enjoys working across strategic, tactical and operational tiers, and at the interface between sectors, organisations and disciplines. 

Following an early career in emergency preparedness, response and recovery working in both local government and the NHS, Dominic completed public health specialty training and then held various Consultant in Public Health and Health Protection roles in both local government and Public Health England.  Dominic is currently the UK Health Security Agency Deputy Director for Health Protection in Regions, with oversight of the Office for Regions and Borders (ORB) and portfolio leadership for pandemic preparedness. 

Dominic graduated from Coventry University with a first-class honours degree in Development and Health in Disaster Management and now combines both public health and emergency management disciplines as a national lead for regional preparedness and response.  Dominic is an active Fellow of the Faculty of Public Health, chairing the Health Protection Committee and overseeing the work of three Special Interest Groups.

Dominic has experience of leading high-profile, complex and sensitive incidents at local, regional, and national levels.  He has been awarded two special service medals by the Faculty of Public Health - one for his role in supporting the local response to the Novichok incident in Salisbury, Wiltshire, the other for his regional leadership during the COVID pandemic.  He lives in Berkeley, Gloucestershire, where he is a Trustee of the Jenner Trust – a charity with custodianship of Dr Jenner’s House, Museum and Garden and the preservation of his global public health legacy.

Femi Varudi, Senior Public Health Officer, Peterborough City Council. Femi Varudi is a Senior Public Health Officer at Peterborough City Council, leading the commissioning and strategic delivery of prevention services, including smoking cessation, NHS Health Checks, and weight management. She specialises in tackling health inequalities and improving access for underserved populations through system-wide approaches. Femi has led the integration of smoking cessation support within drug and alcohol services and works closely with primary care networks, including Greater Peterborough Network, to strengthen prevention pathways and support weight management delivery. She uses data-driven insights to inform commissioning and service improvement. Femi is currently undertaking the UKPHR Practitioner Scheme and has a strong interest in population health and behaviour change.

Kate McPhedran, Principle Health Protection Practitioner, UKHSA South East Public Health Protection Team. Kate is a Principal Health Protection Practitioner at UKHSA South East Region. Kate has worked in health protection for UKHSA and its predecessors since 2006. Prior to working in Health Protection, Kate worked as an Environmental Health Practitioner in Local Authorities as well as in the private sector specialising in food and water audits and outbreaks in the UK and abroad.

Natalie Bandoo, Leading Senior Assessor in BRE for GLP-1 RA Medicines, Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Natalie has a background in biochemistry and has 12 years of experience at MHRA working in various areas of the Safety and Surveillance Group on Yellow Card report processing and detecting and managing safety signals. She is currently a Leading Senior Assessor in the Benefit Risk Evaluation Team where she performs risk management planning for medicines as they come through the authorisation process and pharmacovigilance post-authorisation. She works in the therapeutic area that covers GLP1-receptor agonists and immunotherapies for inflammatory bowel disease. She is also principal assessor for MHRA's Gastroenterology, Rheumatology, Immunology and Dermatology Expert Advisory Group.

Wendy Osmond, Environmental Health Practitioner, Canterbury City Council. Wendy has worked at Canterbury City Council for 25 years. She is Lead Food Officer at Canterbury and manages a small team of food officers.  She has a particular interest in infectious disease. Wendy has worked closely with UKHSA over the years, in particular on Part 2A orders for a TB case and was seconded, to what was then PHE, during COVID to help with the response working mainly with schools and care homes during that time.

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