Mohn Centre blog: Welcoming Yusuf Ibrahim

Yusuf Ibrahim reflects on his journey, aspirations, and explores how research and healthcare can better connect with communities.

We’re thrilled to welcome Yusuf Ibrahim to the Mohn Centre for Children’s Health and Wellbeing at Imperial College London and West London Children’s Healthcare, NHS, as our new Involvement and Engagement Officer. In this unique joint role, Yusuf brings deep local knowledge and a passion for community-led change. In his blog, he reflects on his journey, shares his aspirations, and explores how research and healthcare can better connect with the communities they serve.

I am delighted to have recently joined as an Involvement and Engagement Officer at the Mohn Centre and West London Children’s Healthcare. I have a passion for travelling, having visited over 80 countries, but my home is West London, where I grew up and where I live with my family. It is here in West London that I have been immersed in community life and charted a career path that has led me into increasingly professional and policy-orientated environments

My role focuses on ensuring that children, young people, families, and communities are involved in shaping the health research and services that affect them. I work closely with schools, community groups, and researchers and healthcare staff to create meaningful opportunities for public involvement, particularly with underrepresented communities.

I have spent over a decade working in West London, gaining extensive knowledge of the local communities in North Kensington and White City, supporting young people, families, particularly those who are underserved and often marginalised. I view community work as a learning process in which I constantly deepen my understanding of people and the systems in which they live, helping them to navigate these systems to secure tangible improvements in their lives.

Before taking on this role, I worked in social care for Kensington & Chelsea Council, focusing on youth justice and prevention, and as a Grenfell keyworker supporting survivors and bereaved families in the immediate aftermath of the fire and for over a year afterwards. In this capacity, I led several outreach and engagement programmes, utilising a systemic therapy and trauma-informed approach, with a focus on health, wellbeing, education, and inclusion. This was a period of intense learning, offering deep insights into how the systems surrounding North Kensington residents shaped their lives before and after the fire.

What makes this role at the Mohn Centre and WLCH so meaningful, is that I've worked with Imperial in a different capacity before while part of the voluntary sector. I was working to get young people into STEM subjects, helping to raise aspirations and encouraging young people to explore new ideas outside their usual comfort zones. Now I'm on the inside, part of team building bridges between research and communities. It's a full-circle moment for me, returning and playing my part in enabling Imperial to connect with local communities.

During my early weeks here, I had the opportunity to observe and participate in projects that were nearing their completion. It brought home how passionate and professional the team are and how much young people of all ages connect with the, sometimes complex, research ideas. I sense I will learn a lot from my colleagues.

I have come to realise the importance of research in mitigating health disparity. You can always learn and deepen existing understanding. I am learning a lot from young people as ever, and now at Imperial and WLCH I am learning the importance of high-quality research and involvement and how this informs NHS services and policy at local and national levels. I am looking forward to engaging with colleagues from a range of disciplines and specialities to further develop my understanding.

I am looking forward to helping the Mohn Centre and WLCH innovate in how it listens to and works with young people; I understand that the best way to identify the correct cultural and medical approaches for diverse communities is to secure maximum trust, engagement and involvement, and using data to ensure all voices, including those of young people, are heard and included when policy is formulated.  And this is what I am passionate about; bringing the communities I know so well into the heart of research and decision making. I look forward to helping Imperial and WLCH become part of the fabric of the West London community.