Aberdeen 2036 Event Speakers

Passionate leader of multi-agency partnership working across the public, private and third sector to tackle poverty and improve outcomes for people and communities in Aberdeen. Committed to ensure our City is a place where all people and communities have the opportunity to thrive, regardless of their background and circumstances. Areas of expertise include strategy and policy development, building collaborative partnerships leading to transformational change, quality improvement and human learning systems, empowering communities to realise their human rights and participate as equal community planning partners, leading the change they wish to see in their local area. 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/michellecochlan/ 

Jillian Evans has worked in health organisations for most of her career in both England and Scotland. She is currently a public health professional in NHS Grampian with advisory responsibilities in population health and planning, including providing intelligence on the current and future health needs of our communities and how the health system is able to respond.  She influences how resources are allocated for health care based on evidence and impact and is involved in assessing the quality of care within the organisation.   

Jillian has played a prominent role in the prioritisation of UK wide research in health services and its delivery, and has in-country health services research experience in Nigeria and India.  

For the past ten years she has been a presenter of the Health show on community radio SHMU FM, interviewing guests on particular topics and busting myths on headlines about health research.  She is currently chairperson of this third sector media organisation concerned with confidence building, skills development and employability of people in regeneration areas in Aberdeen.   

A postgraduate of University College London, she was awarded Fellow of Faculty of Public Health by distinction because of her work in public health and the ability to communicate about it.   

During Covid-19, Jillian has supported her team in providing data to manage health services at the height of the pandemic and more recently, generating intelligence to improve our knowledge about the spread of the virus. She has also steered the organisation’s efforts in communication to staff and the public, with over 500 radio and TV appearances on local and national media. 

Alison has worked in health and social care for 18 years initially at South Ayrshire Council where she was Performance and Business Manager for the Children and Communities Directorate. She joined Aberdeen City Council in 2013 following a family relocation to the north east and continued her involvement with social care as Social Care Procurement Manager before joining Aberdeen City Health and Social Care Partnership in July 2017 as Lead for Strategy and Transformation. Alison gained a master’s degree in Strategic Planning and Service Delivery in Health and Social Care as part of the first cohort of this course to graduate in July 2023. Alison is committed to putting people first, responding to their needs holistically and integrating service delivery. She is most proud of her involvement in strategic planning within the health and social care partnership which encompasses working with multiple partners and people from communities across Aberdeen City.

Graeme is the Chief Officer for Children’s Social Work Services and Family Support as well as being Aberdeen City’s Chief Social Work Officer for Aberdeen City. As part of this role, he is the current Chair of Aberdeen City’s Children’s Services Board and Vice Chair of the City’s Child Protection Committee. He has worked predominantly in Children’s Social Work
throughout his career and has spent the last 25 years working in Aberdeen City. Graeme is committed to improving the outcomes for all, young and old, who have experienced trauma and abuse, empowering them to have a strong voice that shapes their care and the services that provide support. Aberdeen City has a strong track record of partnership working which Graeme believes is critical to giving true effect to the African proverb “it takes a village to raise a child”.

Duncan is a senior leader in Scottish education with nearly two decades of experience driving commercial strategy, innovation, and organisational growth. He has led major initiatives that strengthen partnerships, expand opportunities and deliver lasting impact for learners, staff, and communities across the north east of Scotland. He is also convener at Fraserburgh South Links Sports Development Trust where he leads a committee in the development of sports facilities for the communities in and around Fraserburgh.
Before moving into education, Duncan spent 15 years with ScottishPower, where he built a strong reputation as a Senior Authorised Distribution Engineer and Project Manager. There, he successfully delivered large-scale infrastructure projects and played a key role in embedding Six Sigma methodologies to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance performance across operations.
Combining his technical background with strategic leadership, Duncan brings a results-driven, collaborative approach that consistently delivers value in both industry and education.