Marion Furr

As a passionate Occupational Psychologist, I devoted the latter half of my career to driving positive organizational change at the UK Department of Health, where I served as Director of Ministerial Business and Parliamentary Accountability. In this pivotal role, I not only influenced governance but also championed the health and wellbeing of my colleagues by leading the DH Staff Health and Wellbeing programme.

My journey into mindfulness began during a personal period of depression, when I participated in an 8-week mindfulness course. The profound impact of this experience motivated me to train in Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) at Oxford Mindfulness and Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) at Bangor University. I proudly introduced mindfulness practices to over 3,000 colleagues in the DH and across the UK Civil Service, contributing to the significant Mindful Nation UK report and supporting the UK Mindfulness Initiative as an external advisor.

From 2015 to 2020, I was honoured to serve on the Board of Trustees for Oxford Mindfulness, collaborating with fellow trustees to guide the organization through essential operational and leadership initiatives. In the wake of COVID-19 and the shift to online teaching, I contributed to the organization in various capacities, including Operations, HR, and Senior Leadership roles in addition to teaching online courses and teacher training to participants worldwide, advancing our vision of universal access to mindfulness training.

Since April 2025, I have been thrilled to take on the role of Members Programme Lead, where I work to establish and coordinate a dynamic new membership programme at Oxford Mindfulness.

Based in the picturesque surroundings of the Algarve in Portugal since 2016, I am particularly interested in promoting mindfulness in my new community, hopefully enhancing well-being and cultivating a culture of mindfulness locally.