I’m Graham, I was born in Egham (just west of London), and have lived most of my adult life on the south coast of England – from Plymouth in the west to Hastings in the east. More recently I have lived in Bristol and now I am based in Lancaster as a member of the STOR-i Centre for Doctoral Training.
During my physics studies, I enjoyed using mathematics to explore how physical systems worked. I wanted to go deeper and deeper and ultimately found myself studying the mathematical models which describe the fundamental building blocks of nature – electrons, quarks, that sort of thing. I loved it, but by the end I wanted to put my head above ground and use my maths skills in a different setting, that’s when I discovered Operational Research (OR).
I joined the Government OR Service in 2016. I learnt to apply quantitative methods to understand human-based systems, particularly enjoying the modelling of transport systems – I put on a hard hat, went to the various ports where goods are transported into the UK and modelled trucks and containers flow over the border to help the Department for Transport, where ministers were grappling with what a post-Brexit border arrangement might look like. I enjoyed this work and am now embarking on a PhD in Statistics and Operational Research – I am particularly interested in simulation optimisation problems and their application in housing and infrastructure planning.
Academic experience
2022 – 2023: Lancaster University: MRes in Statistics and Operational Research. I studied a range of topics including probability, statistical inference, optimisation and simulation. I undertook short research projects in Markov decision processes and in vehicle routing problems. My MRes dissertation was on the topic of simulation optimisation for the housing of homeless populations, which leads directly onto my PhD research.
2011 – 2015: Sussex University: I completed an MPhys in Physics at Sussex University, graduating in 2015. I specialised in Theoretical Particle Physics, particularly looking at quantum field theories which help us explore quantum gravity. I enjoyed using mathematical methods to understand physical systems and predict their behaviour. Project: Asymptotic Safety in the Gross-Neveu Model (85%) – I researched the high energy characteristics of this mathematical model of interacting fundamental particles by solving the relevant differential equations analytically and numerically and analysing the solutions
2013 – 2014 Uppsala University: I spent one year of my degree on exchange at Uppsala University in Sweden – I enjoyed working with academics from different cultures and studying different areas of physics such as nuclear physics and fluid mechanics. Project: Modification to a Rowland spectrometer for high resolution measurements
Professional experience
2020 – 2022: The Planning Inspectorate: I used statistical forecasting models (ARIMA, exponential smoothing) to forecast operational demand and human resource requirements of the organisation. I also developed a Discrete Event Simulation of the operational workflow to understand the effect of process change on operational performance.
2020: Office for Standards in Education, Child Services and Skills (Ofsted): I analysed pupil attainment and school inspection data to provide insight for regional Ofsted directors into pupil and school performance trends.
2016 – 2018: The Department for Transport (DfT): I provided operational research support to projects for the DfT and its Agencies. I used data analysis, simulation, forecasting and systems-thinking to assist with policy and operational problems posed by the EU Exit Team, Low Carbon Fuels group, the Office for Low Emissions Vehicles and DfT HR.