Hello, I'm Ciara

I'm a Senior User Researcher and Service Designer who leads end-to-end research programmes for complex, regulated public services. Right now that means the HMRC App, one of the UK's largest public service applications.

For the past five years I've owned research from scoping to stakeholder delivery across HMRC, the Ministry of Justice, NHS England, the Department for Business and Trade and the Government Digital Service: line managing and mentoring researchers, aligning senior stakeholders, and turning mixed-methods evidence into roadmap decisions.

Recent results: a 12% increase in payment task completion on the HMRC App, 25% less onboarding friction, and 70% of police officers trusting a national reporting platform they once resisted.

Selected case studies

HMRC App: leading research across payments, onboarding & AI

Leading mixed-methods research for one of the UK's largest public service apps: a 12% lift in Self Assessment payment completion, 25% less onboarding friction, and roadmap influence across high-priority journeys.

Co-designUsability & A/B testingJourney mapping

Ministry of Justice: redesigning the national police reporting system

Owned research for a high-risk national platform serving 45+ police forces: winning over a sceptical delivery team and distrustful users, securing additional funding, and earning a promotion to Senior.

EthnographyDiary studiesCo-design

Department for Business and Trade: improving export data reporting

Led user-centred discovery and service design for a platform migration relied on by ministers, cutting reporting errors by 20% and widening the project from a technology migration into a service redesign.

Service mappingStakeholder workshopsWizard of Oz testing

NHS England: researching sensitive healthcare journeys

Led research with clinicians, patients and vulnerable groups across sensitive healthcare settings, including how patients access sensitive records in the NHS app.

InterviewsWorkshopsSensitive research