Two Appointments for Birmingham's M.E.L

In Birmingham, UK, M.E.L Research has appointed former ONS exec Ben Thatcher as Qualitative Research Director and former DJS researcher Gayle Higginson as Research Manager.

M.E.L is a full-service social research agency aiming 'to make a positive difference to organisations, employees, customers and wider society' and with a strong focus on improving public services.

Thatcher (pictured below) has spent eighteen years in social and market research, beginning in social psychology at Cardiff University. He then moved to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), where he oversaw national household surveys and helped to facilitate the transition of the Census to an online platform, working as a Research Officer, Methodologist and Senior Research Officer during a six-year stay. Since leaving ONS in 2015 he has worked at the Arts Council of Wales, the Tennis Foundation charity, and in Research Director and AD roles at Qa Research and Accent MR. His qual expertise includes IDIs, focus groups on- and off-line, managing online communities, and conducting deliberative research and ethnography; and M.E.L says his focus on representing the views and experiences of underrepresented groups aligns strongly with its own commitment to inclusive research.

Higginson (pictured top) also brings expertise in research among vulnerable and marginalised communities, including studies on sensitive topics such as victims of serious crime and individuals with longer term health conditions. She worked for sixteen years at Opinion Research Corporation, rising to Research Manager and leaving in 2010 for DJS Research in Manchester, where she worked another dozen years. Most recently she spent eighteen months at Adelphi Research.

MD Karen Etheridge says of the new arrivals: 'Both Ben and Gayle bring expertise which further strengthens our offer in our core space, but also provide opportunities to support some of our growing work around the utilities, debt and physical activity spaces. We look forward to their successes in the coming months'.

The company's home page is at www.melresearch.co.uk .