Esther Flanagan
www.nesta.org.uk/team/esther-flanagan/
www.nesta.org.uk/team/esther-flanagan/
Senior Programme Manager, Social Health
Esther is a clinical psychologist with an interest in organisational wellbeing and inclusion, digital mental health, behaviour change and coproduction.
In 2020, she led the development of Nesta’s first Equity, Diversity and Inclusion strategy, which aimed to build a more representative workforce, create a culture of belonging, and ensure that systems were in place to help Nesta make informed decisions about the types of problems worked on and how solutions would benefit minoritised and disadvantaged groups. Esther also worked closely with the People Team to provide guidance on organisational wellbeing initiatives.
Esther worked as a Senior Programme Manager on multiple health-related programmes. One project Esther led was Reimagining Help, which explored how to build behavioural principles into health services to move away from a ‘fix-it’ approach to care, to one that draws on social connection, environmental enablers, and people’s motivations, strengths and skills. Esther is interested in translating evidence into accessible content for frontline staff and communities to apply to their own work and lives.
Esther is a clinical psychologist and specialises in supporting people with chronic pain conditions. She has experience in designing digital psychological interventions and has been involved in developing multiple digital programmes for people with pain.
In a previous role at The Point of Care Foundation, Esther led a national staff support programme called Schwartz Rounds. The programme addressed the emotional needs of staff in health and social care, through storytelling, exploration of organisational narratives, and reflective spaces to process the challenges associated with caring.
Outside of work, you will find Esther reading her Jewish recipe books, feeding her friends and family, or painting famous pubs around London.
