Queen Mary welcomes Professor Sir Ian Chapman to Whitechapel campus

During his visit, Professor Sir Ian met with the University’s President, Professor Colin Bailey, CBE, and Vice-President for Research and Innovation, Professor Andrew Livingston, to discuss the University’s global research portfolio and the impact it’s having.  

For example, he heard how, based on hard metrics, the University is ranked 25th in the world for research collaboration by the Research Collaboration Index, 32nd in the world for the quality of its research and 15th in the world for its international outlook in the latest Times Higher Education World University Rankings. He also learned about the economic benefit Queen Mary brings to not only its local economy, but the UK economy overall and about Queen Mary’s research excellence in the fields of: 

• personalised immunotherapies and cancer, the latter of which it tops the Russell Group for citations based on the Relative Citation Ratio 

• antenna and drone technologies, part of the telecommunications engineering field, for which Queen Mary is ranked 19th in the world in the ARWU 2026 rankings 

• creative industries, including our work chairing the Thames Estuary Creative Skills and Workforce framework and in drama for which the University was ranked number one in the UK 

In addition, Professor Sir Ian met with academics from across Queen Mary who discussed their research, including:  

• Professor Claudia Langenberg, Director of Queen Mary’s Precision Healthcare University Research Institute, who spoke about how, by working with one of the UK’s most diverse populations, the Institute brings together Queen Mary and Barts Health expertise in health data, multi-omics and medical innovation to advance more precise, inclusive approaches to disease prediction, prevention and treatment.
• Professor Katie Sheehan, a UKRI Future Leaders Fellow and Deputy Lead for the Centre for Bone and Joint Health, who showcased how by combining outstanding science with frontline care, the Centre’s work on ankle fractures has changed NHS practice, helping patients recover sooner, reducing costs and restoring almost 90,000 working days each year 

Speaking on the visit, Professor Colin Bailey, President of Queen Mary said: “It was fantastic to welcome Professor Sir Ian to our Whitechapel campus and to demonstrate how research-intensive universities like Queen Mary can convert outstanding capability into public value and productivity growth, through translation, innovation diffusion, skills and place-based partnerships.  

“We spoke about Queen Mary’s research excellence, our global footprint, the contribution we make to the UK economy and our ambition to extend this further by increasing our collaborations, the scale and impact of our research, and by training the research and innovation leaders of tomorrow.  

Professor Sir Ian Chapman said: “I was delighted to meet with colleagues across Queen Mary and to learn more about how the University is channelling its excellence in research into working with, and for, its local community, and alongside partners to drive economic growth and create positive change. Collectively, these collaborations create benefits far beyond East London, catalysing a ripple effect that reaches across the UK and around the world.  

“What really stood out to me was the culture of Queen Mary: there is a really clear sense that research is for everyone here. Working together, they're advancing knowledge, improving lives, and delivering growth. And that is exactly what a great university should do. 

Professor Andrew Livingston, Vice-President for Research and Innovation at Queen Mary said: “Queen Mary is a university on an upward trajectory – the academic year 25/26 was our best ever year for new research awards, with the University receiving 550 awards, totalling £184.6m. It was great to be able to introduce Ian to some of the academics supported by these research awards, who are leading projects that push the boundaries of our knowledge to create impact on the topics that really matter to people across the globe.  

“I was also proud to demonstrate how, at Queen Mary, we are doing things that are truly different, and which add value to the wider research and innovation ecosystem, by building on the unique place and opportunities we have here in East London.” 

During the visit Professor Sir Ian also learned about how Queen Mary is developing the next generation of university and industry research leaders. For example, the University’s STRIDE programme gives students from under-represented backgrounds an insight into the opportunities and excitement of research and supports them to move onto doctoral study. The University is also leading in delivering skills programmes that will unlock the talent pipeline for future breakthroughs, including through multidisciplinary doctoral training programmes, for which Queen Mary was recently awarded £25 million.  

Read more: 

• Queen Mary’s excellence recognised in latest Times Higher Education World University Rankings - Queen Mary University of London
• Professor Dino Distefano elected Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering - Queen Mary University of London
• Queen Mary scientist awarded prestigious £1.4 million UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship to uncover biodiversity's hidden benefits to people - Queen Mary University of London
• Queen Mary receives £25 million in funding to develop next generation of researchers