I’m proud to write this first blog as I launch Elysium London – One of South London’s first inclusive research and advisory consultancies built to support organisations across public health, philanthropy, and the social sector to embed inclusive practice at the heart of their work.
We work with charities, funders, local authorities, NHS teams and mission-driven ventures who want to close the gap between good intentions and tangible outcomes. Whether you’re trying to tackle racial disparities, health inequalities, improve outcomes for underserved communities, or build equity into your organisation’s research or delivery model, Elysium is designed to help. We bring a relationship-driven, outcomes-oriented approach, forged through five years of implementation across research, strategy, and insight delivery. We support teams to deliver projects, strengthen infrastructure, and grow their internal capabilities, all through an inclusive research lens.
A Lifetime in the Making
Elysium London is a lifetime in the making, rooted in my personal journey from the streets of South London to the frontlines of public health and community research.
Most recently, from 2020 to the end of 2024, I helped build Centric Community Research from the ground up, a pioneering social enterprise focused on building the capacity and capability of local communities to engage in research and develop solutions to the problems they face. I was appointed Director of Business Development in 2023 in recognition of my commitment to tackling health inequalities and driving Centric’s growth.
One of the most pivotal moments of my career, and the seed for Elysium’s inception was being invited to deliver a plenary lecture at the 6th UK & Ireland Implementation Science Conference in Limerick, hosted by the NIHR. Standing there beside Centric’s founder, Dr. Shaun Danquah, presenting the work we’d done and the lives we’d changed, forced me to reflect. I realised just how far we’d come, and the breadth of impact I had made across systems, institutions, and communities in South London. I also realised something else: I had a unique skillset that was deeply needed across the sector.
I had worked with so many leaders, people with strategic ambitions to improve representation in their research, funding or programmes, but they lacked the roadmap, the systems, or the insight to make it happen, and this is where I had spent my career: bridging the gap between aspiration and implementation. This includes:
- Leading the design and delivery of community research training, delivered to over 100 individuals across public health teams, community members and researchers in London, with tailored versions also implemented in Ghana and the Dominican Republic via CenGiving.
- Securing funding and high profile partnerships for community research initiatives across South London.
- Leading and delivered over 20 health equity research projects, applying participatory and community-led methods to design, deliver, and evaluate meaningful interventions.
- Managing a team of over 25 community researchers to deliver the projects on the ground.
- Developing and leading partnerships with institutions including Southwark and Lambeth Councils, King’s College Hospital Foundation Trust, King’s College London, Impact on Urban Health, Lambeth Together, Partnership Southwark, and others.
These experiences and the gaps I saw within systems laid the foundations for what came next.
Elysium London: A New Chapter
In 2025, I founded Elysium London bringing together:
- A proven track record of real-world implementation
- Lived experience of inequality and the systems we are trying to change
- Academic rigour and evidence that underpins our research frameworks and models
Our approach helps teams embed inclusive practices into the way they work with the tools, frameworks, and support to implementation across every stage: from strategy and planning to delivery and tangible outcomes.
For those of you reading this who would like to support our work: I’m open to collaborations with delivery teams across the VCSE sector to strengthen partnerships with health systems, researchers and funders. If you’re designing inclusive research strategies, funding programmes, or looking for support to embed meaningful community engagement – let’s talk!
I’ll soon be sharing Elysium London’s first white paper, outlining the models and frameworks we use to support organisations, grounded in real-world experience and underpinned by academic research.
“You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.”- James Clear
Muhammed Rauf
Founder & Managing Director
