8 LF Thomas Consulting | Contact | About

Contact

E-mail: laura@lfthomas.co.uk

Telephone: 07887 920426

 

About

Copyright: Michael Cockerham

Photograph by Michael Cockerham

Laura is a freelance science communicator working with primary and secondary schools and other organisations, such as museums, to promote and encourage the uptake of STEM subjects. She specialises in physics-related topics with a particular interest in space. Laura has a reputation for delivering high-quality and inspiring sessions.

Working in schools Laura gives talks and runs classroom activities for pupils aged 5-18 covering a wide range of physics topics. She supports the development of teachers and museum/science centre staff through continuing professional development sessions. Alongside this she produces resources for use in the classroom or in museums and science centres. As a professional communicator Laura has a keen interest in the science of speaking and runs her own presentation skills course.

She works with a diverse range of clients including National Museums Scotland, South Lanarkshire Council, Argyll and Bute Council and ESERO-UK amongst many others.

She is a member of the Institute of Physics, the Association for Science Education and the British Interactive Group (BIG). She sits on the IOP Scotland committee and is also an ESERO Space Ambassador.

A graduate of the University of Edinburgh, Laura completed an MPhys in Astrophysics before going on to work in outreach and student recruitment marketing in Higher Education. In the period 2006-2012 she was Outreach Manager for Mathematics and Physics at Queen Mary, University of London. Responsible for undergraduate recruitment to the maths and physics departments, Laura supported this through organising an annual outreach programme that saw over 10,000 students, teachers and parents. The programme received the Centennial Award from the Royal Aeronautical Society and a London Education Partnership award.

Laura has a reputation as an excellent speaker and in 2013 she was the IOP Schools and Colleges lecturer. She visited 35 different venues to talk about the physics of spaceflight. Full details can be found here.