Gabriella Rooks
Research Assistant/ Coordinator
Gabriella Rooks is a Research Assistant and Community Engagement Lead at the Manchester Global Foundation (MGF), where she supports the development, implementation, and dissemination of community-based mental health and global health research. With an academic background in Life Sciences and Global Health, she brings an interdisciplinary perspective to research focused on reducing health inequalities and improving access to culturally responsive and evidence-based interventions.
Her work centres on Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE), with a particular focus on fostering meaningful partnerships between researchers, healthcare professionals, community organisations, and individuals with lived experience. Gabriella has extensive experience engaging ethnically diverse communities across the UK, supporting inclusive research practices that ensure the voices of underserved populations are represented throughout the research process.
At MGF, she contributes to stakeholder engagement, participant recruitment, community outreach, research dissemination, and the development of study materials across a range of public health and mental health projects. She has supported research examining severe mental illness, health inequalities, culturally adapted interventions, and community-centred approaches to improving mental health outcomes among marginalised populations.
Alongside her professional role, Gabriella’s academic interests focus on innovative approaches to mental health promotion and prevention. Her research explores the potential of social prescribing, animal-assisted interventions, and school-based mental health programmes to support psychological wellbeing among children and young people. Through her work, she is committed to advancing equitable, evidence-informed, and community-driven approaches to health and wellbeing, with the aim of translating research into meaningful policy and practice.