Paul Evans

Paul is Head of Strategic Partnerships & Growth at Health Innovation Yorkshire and Humber and Commercial and Operations Lead for the Yorkshire and Humber SDE.

Paul leads the commercial and operational delivery of the Yorkshire & Humber Secure Data Environment, developing financially robust delivery models, managing strategic data partnerships, and enabling efficient access to high-value health data for research. Working across NHS, academic, and industry partners to align with national SDE priorities and drive regional impact.

Prior to joining Health Innovation Yorkshire & Humber, Paul gained extensive experience across the public and private sectors, with a strong focus on business and research development in the university sector. At the Leeds Institute for Data Analytics (LIDA), he played a key role in leading a university-based SDE, where he successfully drove research income and built strategic data partnerships spanning both health and non-health domains. One of his proudest achievements was establishing a major partnership with a national supermarket, enabling pioneering research into consumer behaviour and dietary patterns using complex linked datasets.