Jennifer Challinor

Head of Research and Development

Jennifer has been with The Crichton Trust since January 2018. She is passionate about working with the local community and partners to develop projects and test the next generation of innovations, working across our teams to understand the challenges and opportunities of adapting to new technologies, the climate emergency and an ageing society for both The Crichton and beyond.

She joined The Trust to coordinate the ‘Building the Case for a Care Campus’ Project. This was a three year community-led project that explored what would make Dumfries and Galloway the best place to grow old. During this project, she worked with rural communities, partners, and stakeholders to explore the opportunities of an ageing rural population and how rural places can innovate and be empowered to find solutions that work for them. This work continues to inform our research and development activities at the Trust. Jennifer now works with colleagues across the organisation to develop strategic projects and partnerships.

Jennifer has over 20 years of experience working in and growing impact on social enterprises and charities in Scotland and beyond. She has a background in programme management, evaluation, co-development and design, and community empowerment and has used her skills as a worker, volunteer and co-founder. She is passionate about supporting people, communities and inclusive innovation.

Jennifer has lived in the region with her family for 15 years. In her spare time, she can often be found walking on local hills or woods with her Labrador or drinking tea with friends. She is on the board of South of Scotland Community Housing and is also a visiting research fellow at the University of Glasgow.