I am Director of Public Health for Warrington. The theme of my Fellowship was drug misuse and its purpose was to look for the evidence used to inform drug control policies in Europe and the USA – was there any? I went to the United Nations, World Health Organization and the Office for National Drug Control Policy on my travels.

I had been developing a young people's heroin and cocaine reduction plan for the UK Drug Prevention Board and we were all struck by how little good quality evidence there was to draw on.

Having involved young people in the development of the UK plan, I was keen to see how other countries involved young people in developing their drug control policies.

My findings contributed to national discussions about the lack of evidence and I reviewed and published the evidence as part of a national project. I received the 2000 Pol Roger Award, which is given to one Fellow every year for conducting an outstanding Fellowship and generating significant publicity for their findings.

As a Fellow I get to meet others who are passionate about life, which always inspires me.