Category: Support Staff

Rob Eastwood, Service Coordinator, Counselling and Mental Health Service

Celebrating #OurImperial community during COVID-19

“First and foremost, everyone has been working to make sure that our students are being supported – that our students have that key mental health support.”

I’m a Service Coordinator in the Student Counselling and Mental Health Advice Service. I’m responsible for making sure that the administration of the counselling and mental health process runs smoothly – both for the students and the staff – and that our students can be contacted safely, quickly and fairly.

When the lockdown happened, the first thing we did was pause our service for about a week while we planned and implemented the safest way to support our students. I worked closely with ICT – in particular with Nam Ly, Mark Curtis and Rob Sherwood – to get the team set up with the equipment they needed to work remotely and to make sure they could access our systems. (more…)

Georgina Wildman, Library Manager & Liaison Librarian (Medicine), Library Services

“I’m always proud to see MBBS students become junior doctors and to see ground-breaking research by the familiar faces of our library users reported in the news.”

I started my career at the age of seven as a student librarian at primary school – clearly it was a formative experience as I’ve been working as a qualified librarian since 2008. I’ve been at Imperial Library Services for eight years. The pay, conditions and technology have vastly improved from that primary school library, but I do miss the special gold “Librarian” badge… (more…)

Alex Ashbee, Careers Events and Marketing Assistant, Careers Service

“It is really rewarding to organise events that our students get a lot out of, and that employers continue to attend because they value the talent at Imperial.”

I graduated in 2008 with a BA in Fine Art and have since worked in a diverse range of places, including the Houses of Parliament, the Natural History Museum and a rare stamp and coin specialist business. Working in this pretty eclectic mix has helped me develop a broad range of skills, and I have really enjoyed being able to meet and work with so many different characters.

I started working at Imperial in 2016 as a Marketing and Events Assistant in the Careers Service. My role is varied and can mean juggling a lot of disparate tasks, which is what attracted me to the position. My focus revolves around producing and designing our printed and online resources for students, assisting in the organisation of on-campus careers events and establishing good relationships with employers. I have really enjoyed working to develop our Careers Service’s visual identity into something that makes us stand out and attracts students to our service, and I hope to continue to evolve our identity onto different platforms. (more…)

Moira Sarsfield, Principal Learning Technologist, Faculty of Natural Sciences

“It is a very exciting time to be involved with supporting teaching and learning in the College. It is a fantastic challenge, and really motivating to be involved with improving the learning opportunities for Imperial students.”

I am a scientist at heart with a degree in genetics from the University of Aberdeen (my home town). After university, I worked in STEMM publishing, then as an e-learning project manager, producing CD-ROMs and websites for medical continuing professional development, and supplementary materials for university-level textbooks.

I began the third stage of my career in 2003, joining Imperial as one of the first learning technologists in the College – at the time, it was a part-time role in what is now called the Department of Life Sciences. During this period, I also worked with a consortium of universities and the Royal College of Nursing on development and delivery of an online degree programme for healthcare professionals. (more…)

Gareth Oliver, Remote IT Support Engineer, Information and Communication Technologies

“I remember how brilliant it was when high speed internet arrived in the UK – we could suddenly download movies while making a cup of tea instead of having to wait for hours!”

I was born and raised in Wales, with Welsh being my first language. After studying Maths at the University of Wales Aberystwyth, I briefly worked in retail and then started my career in IT.

Working for Cable & Wireless (which became NTL and then Virgin Media) at the start of the broadband rollout was really exciting. My role involved analysing faults and responding to customers. I remember how brilliant it was when high speed internet arrived in the UK – we could suddenly download movies while making a cup of tea instead of having to wait for hours! (more…)

David Gordon, Mobile Supervisor, Security Services

“From providing security advice, to stopping bike thieves and giving CPR to save someone’s life on campus – I love the work I do.”

Before joining Imperial, I worked in the Home Office for 13 years in a variety of roles, the last being working on the Cutter Fleet – this involved boarding vessels out at sea and looking for drugs, firearms and other prohibited items.

I joined Imperial in 2015 as a Senior Security Officer. My current role as a Mobile Supervisor focuses on overseeing security operations at all Imperial’s campuses, and I share responsibility for 114 members of staff. I am fortunate that I get to work across all campuses, and enjoy meeting and engaging with all our stakeholders. (more…)

Christopher Bamikole, Laboratory Manager and Section Safety Coordinator, Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction

“My role is centred on helping people, from senior academics who need resources and space for their groups to conduct experiments, to ensuring the safety of junior researchers.”

Celebrating our community for Black History Month

I’ve worked at Imperial for over five years now, and in that time my role has changed significantly from a junior support role to a managerial one. My role is centred on helping people, from senior academics who need the resources and space for their groups to carry out experiments, to ensuring the safety of junior researchers. (more…)

Oluseyi Oduntan, Health & Safety Advisor (Construction), Estates Division

“I’m currently carrying out site inspections at the student accommodation in North Acton, as well as Scale Space at the White City Campus.”

Celebrating our community for Black History Month

I was born and raised in Nigeria, where I studied industrial chemistry at the University of Ilorin. I wanted to further my career in health and safety, so moved to the UK a few years later and began working for Coca-Cola Enterprise, and then for the NHS – I spent 11 years at both organisations. (more…)

Nikita Rathod, Communications and Events Officer, Institute of Global Health Innovation

“I feel fortunate to play a part in raising awareness of the valuable work that comes out of our Institute, and to present it in a way that does the research justice.”

I joined the Institute of Global Health Innovation (IGHI) at Imperial in 2016 after working for a higher education organisation. I wanted a role that gave me the space to explore my creative side in writing, design and social media while using my skills in events organisation. (more…)

Solvita Petrauska, Welcome Host, Security Services

“I feel privileged to welcome Imperial’s guests and to be their first point of contact when entering the College, and it is a pleasure to assist them with their enquiries.”

My journey at Imperial started eight years ago when I joined as a Catering Assistant. I loved my job at the Library Café and I particularly enjoyed being a part of a large team working in a customer-oriented environment. (more…)