Career details

I am a Research Fellow at The Centre for Child and Family Justice Research where I have held a research post since 2015. My work is positioned at the interface between academia and social care practice with children and families. I am a qualified social worker, and I am committed to ensuring my research is utilised and translated into practice. I have a long-standing interest in the experiences of families, and particularly mothers, who are in receipt of compulsory state interventions and am committed to research that amplifies the lived expereince voice to help shape policy and practice.

I am a qualitative researcher and have worked on a wide range of projects at a local regional and national level. I was the lead qualitative researcher on the Nuffield Foundation funded study Vulnerable Birth Mothers and Recurrent Care Proceedings. I continue to have an active role in and policy and practice development in this area and, with Research in Practice, run a national Community of Practice for managers and practitioners working in services supporting parents post-proceedings. More information is available HERE

More recently, I have been Co-Investigator on a project to develop new national guidelines to support practice when the state intervenes at birth due to safeguarding concerns. This project formed part of the Born into Care series, led by Professor Karen Broadhurst working with and the Nuffield Family Justice Observatory, SAIL at Swansea University and The REES Centre. The research report, guidelines and other resources associated with this work can be found HERE.

Currently, I am leading the Giving HOPE project. Building on the learning from the Born into Care series and working in partnership with the HOPE mothers, (a group of women with lived experience of separation at birth), a neonatal loss charity, NHS England Maternity Safeguarding network and Birth Companions, we have co-produced the HOPE Boxes. The HOPE Boxes are designed to promote more compassionate care and support and to help minimise the trauma when a mother and baby are separated close to birth.  I am working with colleagues at Kings College London, and Exeter and Essex Universities to further develop the intervention and embed across multi-agency pathways within maternity, peri-natal mental health, and Children’s Social Care pathways. Working with Rachel Grey, and with funding from the Sir Halley Stewart Trust we are producing a training programme to help support their use.