Our diverse board of advisors are comprised of subject matter experts and experienced candidates in a range of different fields. Our management team contact these professionals for their advice and expertise on an individual basis, which varies according to the topic of interest. The advisors do not shape the direction of the research agenda and are largely impartial.
We are continually reviewing and expanding our team to amplify diverse voices and opinions. We are a non-partisan independent charity and therefore the affiliation of our members to any sect or political party does not impact on our work.
Dr Merajuddin Hasan MBE
Dr Hasan is a retired Consultant Psychiatrist. After graduating, he trained as a psychiatrist in Glasgow and was appointed a Consultant in South Wales in 1980. Dr Hasan was also the former Clinical Director of the NHS South Wales Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) where he managed the Clinical Network. He has been involved in voluntary work through the Muslim Council of Wales and local mosques. He currently serves as a Trustee of CCAWS in Cardiff, a charity providing counselling, befriending and advocacy mainly for ethnic minority communities, in a variety of languages.
Ms Dawn Hardman
Dawn has extensive experience of working across the private, third, and statutory sectors, providing innovative methods of support when working with individuals suffering from mental health. Her career began in Youth Work and then Social Work alongside voluntary work with Nightsafe, Women’s Aid & other charities. Dawn is currently a Managing Director and has over thirty years of experience in therapeutic interventions. She is also a Master Trainer with Living Works. Dawn has been recognised and awarded for her delivery of MHFA training courses by the House of Lords. Dawn enjoys organising awareness raising events, and she sits on various panels such as the Lancashire Suicide Prevention Strategy Board and advocates addressing stigma and discrimination wherever it is found.
Afzal Khan CBE MP
Labour Shadow Deputy Leader of the House of Commons
In 2000 Afzal was elected to Manchester City Council, rising to become the first Asian Lord Mayor of the city, receiving the co-op ‘Mayor of the Year’ award. In 2008, the Queen of England awarded Afzal a CBE for his work on community cohesion, inter-faith and local government. Afzal was also a Member of the European Parliament for North West England and served as Vice president of Security and Defence (2014 - 2017). In March of 2018, he was awarded the Sitara-i-Quaid-i-Azam, the highest civilian honour, recognising his contribution to Pakistan-British relations. Afzal also served as Shadow Minister for Immigration (2017-2019) and Shadow Foreign Office Minister (2019-2020). He is also the Chair of the APPG on Trade & Tourism Britain – Pakistan. He holds honorary doctorates from the Government College University in Lahore (philosophy) and Mirpur University of Science and Technology.