Welcome to 'This Is The North' Podcast, your source of transformative conversations. An intentional challenge to the systems holding back the North of England. Hosted by Alison Dunn, an award-winning charity chief executive and former solicitor. This podcast is supported by Society Matters Community Interest Company and is dedicated to curating and sharing knowledge, powering the change we need for a more equal and inclusive society.

In this episode, Alison speaks with Professor Mike Waring, Chair of Medicinal Chemistry, and Professor Akane Kawamura, a Professor of Chemical Biology at Newcastle University. What starts as a conversation about drug discovery becomes a story about human impact, regional potential, and where life-saving innovation happens.

Professor Waring's office wall tells a story. Framed like a diploma hangs a handwritten letter from a stranger in France—a man with lung cancer who'd been told there was no treatment. His terror wasn't about dying. It was about leaving his disabled wife alone. Traditional chemotherapy would render him too weak to be her carer, and without him, she had nobody. Then came the phone call that changed everything. A doctor had spotted a genetic marker that made him eligible for an experimental drug—one that had started as chemical equations scribbled on whiteboards in Newcastle by Mike's team. "Now he takes a once-daily pill," Mike says, "and he's alive and healthy enough to look after the person he loves most."

That drug represents something remarkable happening in the North. Newcastle University has brought two cancer medicines to market with modest funding, yet the region continues losing its brightest minds to opportunities down south. The professors have a plan to change this: a Northeast Institute for Molecular Medicine employing 1,000 researchers, rivalling London's Francis Crick Institute.

The barriers reveal themselves in the numbers. While 46% of public research investment flows to the Golden Triangle, the North East could provide the trained scientists that Britain's £25 billion pharmaceutical export industry desperately needs. Northern institutions aren't just competing for resources—they're fighting the assumption that serious science happens elsewhere.

Episode Timestamps:

00:30 Meet the Experts

00:55 The Journey of Drug Discovery

02:55 Challenges and Resilience in Drug Development

07:01 Women in STEM

08:45 The Vision for a Northeast Institute for Molecular Medicine

11:14 The Importance of Location and Infrastructure

15:52 Investment and Political Climate

19:18 Future Challenges and Opportunities

22:52 Inspiring the Next Generation

Behind every policy discussion about regional investment are real people whose lives hang in the balance. The man in France who can care for his wife. The postgraduate student choosing between staying home and advancing their career. The families who could benefit from high-skilled, well-paid jobs in their communities.

The question is whether we'll invest in keeping that excellence here, or continue watching our brightest minds head elsewhere. Somewhere in France, a man is making breakfast for his wife because scientists in Newcastle refused to accept that innovation only happens in the Golden Triangle.

Host: Alison Dunn

Guests: Professor Mike Waring & Professor Akane Kawamura

This podcast is produced by Purpose Made.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to This Is The North Podcast, your source of transformative conversations—an intentional challenge to the systems holding back the North of England. Hosted by Alison Dunn, an award-winning charity chief executive and former solicitor, this podcast is supported by Society Matters Community Interest Company and is dedicated to curating and sharing knowledge, powering the change we need for a more equal and inclusive society.

In this compelling episode, Alison engages with Praful Nargund—entrepreneur, campaigner, and founder of The Good Growth Foundation. Together, they challenge conventional economic wisdom and explore a vision where good growth and equality go hand in hand.

Praful shares his deeply personal journey—from being born in Bradford to Indian parents who came to work in the NHS, to revolutionising access to IVF treatment, to his current mission of reshaping economic policy. His story show how lived experience shapes our understanding of systemic barriers and opportunities for change. The conversation also delves into the profound disconnect between economics and people's daily realities. As Praful notes, "there was a real sense in our work that when the economy grew, it did use to benefit us 20, 30 years ago," Praful explains. "That's been broken. It doesn't benefit us anymore."

Beyond diagnosing problems, Alison and Praful chart a path forward—one that prioritises "skills and bills" over abstract GDP figures, that recognises the transformative power of local SMEs, and that refuses to pit communities against each other in a competition for resources. They confront the harsh realities of political campaigning, the erosion of public trust, and the urgent need for economic policies that people can "see, feel, and touch" in their everyday lives.

This isn't just a conversation about economic theory—it's a call for a new approach to prosperity that prioritises human dignity and real-world impact. By connecting big ideas with people's lived experiences, Praful and Alison highlight how transformative change happens not through statistics, but through policies that make tangible differences in people's lives.

Episode Timestamps:

00:00 Introduction

03:15 Tackling Inequality

04:32 Education and Skills

06:08 Political Battlegrounds

09:27 Finding Resilience

11:32 The Birth of The Good Growth Foundation

15:53 "Skills and Bills"

22:17 Devolution Challenges

27:37 Regional Inequality Without Regional Division

29:15 170,000 Children in Cold Homes

36:55 Laying the Breadcrumbs

This episode serves as a powerful reminder that true economic transformation requires more than statistical growth—it demands policies that people can actually feel in their daily lives. By bringing together visionary thinking with practical solutions, Praful and Alison challenge us to reimagine prosperity as something that benefits everyone, creating communities where opportunity and fairness go hand in hand.

The great tragedy of modern economics isn't that we've failed to grow—it's that we've forgotten what we're growing for.

Enjoyed this episode? Subscribe now to stay updated on conversations that matter and help shape a brighter, more equitable future.

Host: Alison Dunn

Guest: Praful Nargund

This podcast is produced by Purpose Made, empowering change through intentional leadership and shared knowledge.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to 'This Is The North' Podcast, your source of transformative conversations. An intentional challenge to the systems holding back the North of England. Hosted by Alison Dunn, an award-winning charity chief executive and former solicitor. This podcast is supported by Society Matters Community Interest Company and is dedicated to curating and sharing knowledge, powering the change we need for a more equal and inclusive society.

In this revealing episode, Alison explores how a pioneering Newcastle-based initiative is transforming healthcare by looking beyond traditional medicine to address the social factors that truly determine our wellbeing, with two remarkable guests:

• Dr. Brigid Joughin, GP and former trustee of Ways to Wellness
• Steffen Laukard, Lead for the Persistent Physical Symptoms project at Ways to Wellness

The conversation examines Ways to Wellness' innovative approach to health that addresses the "wider determinants" – housing, social connections, employment, and joy – and how these factors often have greater impact on health outcomes than medication alone. Through social prescribing, this groundbreaking organisation is demonstrating that listening, acknowledging grief, and creating space for joy can transform lives while potentially reducing pressure on the NHS.

Episode Timestamps:

00:00 Introduction to The North Podcast

01:03 Understanding Ways to Wellness

02:04 The Role of Social Prescribers

02:51 Challenges in General Practice

07:09 Persistent Physical Symptoms Project

11:21 Impact and Feedback from Patients

18:27 Reducing NHS Costs and Hospital Admissions

20:00 Managing a Bespoke Service

22:56 Future of Ways to Wellness

24:55 Mental Health and Diagnostic Labels

32:23 Sustaining the Project

34:56 Conclusion and Contact Information

Throughout the discussion, Steffen shares his powerful "orange box" metaphor that illustrates how chronic pain gradually contracts life's joys until sometimes only pain remains. Ways to Wellness aims to expand that box again, creating space for patients to rediscover meaning while acknowledging their conditions.

As Dr. Joughin notes, "We're not a sausage factory, we're individuals" – challenging the NHS tendency toward economies of scale that often fail in healthcare delivery. The conversation concludes with reflections on sustainability and an invitation to innovators with ideas addressing social determinants of health.

Enjoyed this episode? Subscribe now to stay updated on conversations that matter and help shape a brighter, more equitable future for the North.

Host: Alison Dunn

Guests: Dr. Brigid Joughin, Steffen Laukard

This podcast is produced by Purpose Made, empowering change through intentional leadership and shared knowledge.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.