About me:

I am an interdisciplinary researcher and educator specialising in children and young people’s mental health, implementation in education and attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder. My research work is broadly focused on wellbeing in education, additional learning needs and implementation in schools. This includes topics such as social, emotional and mental health as a special educational need; behaviour in schools; workload and burnout; professional development; teachers’ mental health and wellbeing; school mental health and wellbeing policies. I have also researched and written about implementation science applied to schools: school-based interventions for ADHD; mental health and school attendance; schools as complex adaptive systems; involving young people in research; the involvement of practitioners in generating and prioritising research ideas; and inclusive science teaching.

I have been teaching in the School of Education since 2008. Before I started a lectureship in 2017, I taught psychology and researched in a Further Education College, completed my PhD in Education here and have worked as a researcher at the University of Exeter Medical School on projects related to child and adolescent mental health.

I have taught across PGCE, MSc Psychology and MA Education programmes. I currently co-direct our online MSc Psychology Conversion Programme and lead modules on children and young people’s mental health; personality and individual differences; and educational psychology. I supervise doctoral and masters level research students. I am part of the departmental Research Centre for Special Educational Needs, Disability and Inclusive Education (SENDIN) and the inter-disciplinary research network, Children and Young People’s Wellbeing.

I am interested in taking on new doctoral students. Please see my list of interests above and under the Research tab.

I have taught undergraduate and postgraduate research methods and serve as a Methods Editor for the Education Coordinating group of Campbell. I use a wide range of methods in my own work. For instance, I was senior author on an award-winning systematic review on the association between anxiety and poor attendance at school and have published several recent primary qualitative research papers about ADHD.

Interests:

• Wellbeing and education
• Implementation in schools
• Special educational needs and disability
• Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and schools
• School attendance
• Behaviour in schools
• Teacher education and professional development
• Educational transitions
• School staff workload and burnout
• Anxiety
• Schools as systems

Qualifications:

• PhD Education, University of Exeter, 2011
• MSc Educational Research, University of Exeter, 2007
• BSc (Hons) Psychology, University of Surrey, 2005