LGBTQ+ staff profiles

The profiles below are an initiative from the LGBTQ+ Staff Forum to help promote the diversity of our community at Oxford Brookes University. We hope that profiling visible LGBTQ+ colleagues will show prospective and current staff and students that the University is an inclusive and positive place where you can feel confident and supported to be yourself at work or study.

If you would be interested to add your profile, please contact Jane Butcher (jane.butcher@brookes.ac.uk).

The Brookes LGBTQ+ Staff Forum has been active since 2015 in providing a space for staff identifying as LGBTQ+ to connect, to support members in their working lives, promote awareness of LGBTQ+ equality and assist the University in policy and practice development. Working with Brookes Union, the LGBTQ+ Staff Forum collaborates with Student LGBTQ+ groups to also develop events for LGBTQ+ History Month and other activities to benefit the whole Oxford Brookes community.

Aaron Worsley-Burke

(he/him)

Research Liaison Lead, Directorate of Learning Resources

"Being out at work is liberating. It also means you can fly the flag for equality and ensure the rights of other LGBTQ+ staff are respected."

Alon Lischinsky

(they/them, elle/le, זיי/זייער)

Senior Lecturer in Communication & Discourse

"Being out is a hard-won right, as well as a way to help spare others the loneliness we had to experience."

Jayne Stuart

(she/her)

Graphic Designer and Digital Media Developer, Directorate of Learning Resources

Chair of the LGBTQ+ Staff Forum

"I came to terms with being gay whilst at university, so after years of hiding this part of my identity from myself and others, I feel it’s important to present my true self in the workplace."

Justin Cule

Clinical Skills and Simulation Manager, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences

"The University isn’t just a job for me, it’s been a huge part of my life and I continue to enjoy every day here."

Kate Harford

(Rev., she/her)

University Chaplain and Pastoral Care Lead, Chaplaincy, Academic and Student Administration

Training Officer for the LGBTQ+ Staff Forum

"My experience of being out at Brookes has been a really positive one - people are sometimes surprised to find a married queer priest in the Multifaith Chaplaincy office but it’s a good conversation-starter."

Lindsay Williams

Associate Dean for Education and Student Experience, Oxford Brookes Business School

"One of the main reasons this role is important to me is that I can bring my own experiences of having a non-normative gender and sexual identity into who I am at work and the decsions I help make across the University."

Peter Forsaith

Research Fellow, Oxford Centre for Methodism and Church History, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences

"Brookes has always been an affirmative community; three colleagues in particular supported me through ‘coming out’, they were wonderful. I’ve tried to be there similarly for others."

Sarah Madden-Queralt

Deputy Director of Sport, and Estates and Campus Services Strategic Projects, Estates and Campus Services

"I feel a responsibility to be visible to everyone and play an active role in ensuring the future landscape is an inclusive one, where respect drives behaviour and shapes culture."

Susan Cheyne

Teaching Fellow, Biological Anthropology, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences

"Do not be afraid to be yourself, Brookes is an open and supportive environment and there are many groups and networks for you to join to help your move to Oxford."

Jane Butcher

(she/her)

Equality Diversity and Inclusion Adviser, Directorate of Human Resources

"Listening and learning from different voices and experiences is central to making the University an inclusive and welcoming place where diversity is truly valued, where everyone can be part of making this a reality and feel the benefits."