Heather is Senior Research Fellow at the think tank British Future. She has carried out research on immigration since the 1990s, in particular on migration for work and on public attitudes. She was previously British Future's Director of Research and before joining the think tank in 2021 she led research on employment and social policy at the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, and was Director of Research at Demos.

With the aim of using new evidence to influence policy and debate, Heather has published research findings in a wide range of formats including book chapters, academic articles, news and opinion pieces as well as regular research reports.