Graham is a strategist and systems thinker with over 20 years’ experience of driving social impact in justice, health, addiction and social care systems. He has worked extensively with central and local government departments, major funders, think tanks, leading charities, corporates and grassroots organisations, helping them to shape strategy, design innovative systems-focused solutions and influence national policy.
Over the years, Graham has been at the forefront of systems change, helping to shape national and local responses to community-led rehabilitation, health inequalities and neighbourhood safety. Key contributions include:
Supporting the formation and effectiveness of Community Safety Partnerships across England and Wales
Chairing the Offender Health Collaborative, commissioned by NHS England to develop a national liaison and diversion operating model
Leading Beyond Youth Custody, a Big Lottery-funded programme focused on transforming support for young people leaving custody
Co-designing the operating model for the world’s first social impact bond at HMP Peterborough with Social Finance
Establishing Addiction Awareness Week, launched by HRH The Duchess of Cambridge (now HRH The Princess of Wales) in 2019, as part of Action on Addiction’s advocacy programme aimed at reducing stigma, promoting public awareness, and improving access to early intervention approaches
Graham brings a distinctive combination of strategic insight, systems thinking, policy expertise, commercial awareness, and frontline experience. At the heart of Graham’s work is a belief in the power of communities to be centrally involved in change that affects them. He champions approaches that are inclusive and evidence-informed, and that achieve long-standing systemic impact.
Graham is known for his cross-boundary leadership, ability to connect vision with practical action, and passion for leveraging the voice and versatility of the voluntary and community sector in relation to system change. He also coaches and mentors senior leaders, helping them to:
Leverage their latent talent as a systems thinker in ways that align with their busy lives
Navigate the complexities of systems working and cross-boundary collaboration
Reposition their organisation’s purpose, prospects and role within its wider ecosystems
Create new high-leverage relationships that fund and support today’s innovations: tomorrow’s business as usual.
Graham is the former Chief Executive of Action on Addiction and the former Interim Chief Executive of Nacro. He also has decades of experience as a strategy, communications, and operations director. Graham currently serves as Vice Chair at YMCA St Paul’s Group where he is also Chair of the Performance Committee and former board safeguarding lead. In addition, he is a director of Reimagining Criminal Justice CIC. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, Graham is an experienced chair and public speaker at conferences, roundtables and events, as well as in the media. He brings unique insights, a relational approach, practical support and a strong strategic and systemic focus to everything he works on.