I am a Senior Lecturer in Health and Social Care and am based in the Department of Social Care and Social Work where I teach and research. I joined Manchester Metropolitan University in 2014. 

I am a sociologist sitting at the intersection of sociology and health, conducting interdisciplinary research and evaluation around three main research areas:

1. sexual and reproductive health and rights and gender-based violence. 
2. gender and health.
3. sexual and reproductive health in disaster / complex situations. 

My research emphasises the importance of sexual and reproductive health and rights, the need for a gendered lens in healthcare planning and delivery and the need for better information during difficult circumstances. Much of my work seeks to challenge stigma around sexual and reproductive health and asks questions with marginalised groups around sensitive topics. Working in an applied and interdisciplinary manner has enabled me to share insights from groups who are seldom heard in policy or practice. 

There is significant overlap across the three broad areas and issues around social policy, digital technologies, access to services and inequalities are common themes throughout. I have worked with a range of participants including veterans, sex workers and their clients, LGBT communities, ethnic minority communities, people living with HIV, families of prisoners, commissioners, clinicians, Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise organisations, and health and social care practitioners.

My present work focuses on two key areas:

• I have recently worked with military and veteran communities to develop the first feasibility and pilot study in the UK to examine the long-term experiences and outcomes of male veterans who sustained a combat-genital injury.
• I am currently undertaking work around the climate crisis and health, with a focus on sexual and reproductive health. I am a member of the SRHR and Climate Justice Coalition, COST Action 22162 - FutureMed: A Transdisciplinary Network to Bridge Climate Science and Impacts on Society;  A WHO lead group Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights and Climate Change Consultation. 

Previous work includes:

• Evaluation of a £1 million complex population health project working towards ending new HIV transmissions in Greater Manchester.
• A rapid study into the impact of COVID-19 on sexual and reproductive health.
• Qualitative research on blood cancer and sexual wellbeing.
• Several research projects on the sex industry, exploring men and women who pay for sex.  

I am committed to facilitating the role of research evidence into policy and practice by contributing to a range of policy consultations, producing research findings in alternative formats, and collaborating with commissioners and practitioners to encourage the uptake of results and recommendations. My work has also appeared across multiple media outlets.

Capacity Development:

I am passionate about capacity development and I have acted as a mentor to women researchers in low to middle income countries and mentor’s female researchers through a WHO research mentorship scheme. I provide other support mentoring and capacity development support through AuthorAid and have facilitated several MOOCs around academic wiring a policy impact for researcher in the Global South. 

I am Deputy Director of the Wellbeing, Health and Communities pathway for the ESRC White Rose Doctoral Partnership where I lead on supporting students on this pathway through designing and delivering a training programme to meet their doctoral student needs. 

Expert Funder reviewer:

I review international and national funding proposals including for UKRI, where I am a member of their talent peer review college, and NIHR. I support the WHO to foster the recognition of universal ethical and scientific principles of good research practice, by reviewing research projects under consideration by the WHO Department of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research.

Expert reviewer for peer reviewed journals

• Sociology
• Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters
• Sexualities
• Social Policy
• Sociology Compass
• Frontiers
• Sexual & Reproductive Healthcare
• Sociology of Health and Illness 
• Comics
• Journal of Sex Research
• BMJ Public Health
• PLOS ONE
• European Journal of Oncology Nursing
• Journal of consumer culture
• Culture, Health and Sexuality
• Feminism and Psychology
• Palgrave Communications
• Reproductive Health
• The International Journal of Human Rights
• Manchester University Press – Book proposal reviewer 

Prizes and awards

Nominated MMU Staff awards, 2022 in the Leadership category. 

Membership of professional associations

Fellow of the Higher Education Academy

Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals

In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. My work contributes towards the following SDG(s):

• Goal 3: Good Health and Well-being
• Goal 5: Gender Equality
• Goal 13: Climate Action
• Goal 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

Early biography:

Born in Manchester, I have lived in the North of England all my life. I gained my first degree in Computing and Management Science from Sheffield Hallam. During this time I became more drawn towards the statistical manipulation of social science data, seeking to explore and understand social problems rather than addressing financial and business challenges; postgraduate study seemed the obvious way to convert and in 2004 I joined the Department of Sociological Studies at the University of Sheffield to study on the MA Sociological Research. This was the beginning of a shift of disciplines from computing science to social science. I stayed at the University of Sheffield to undertake my doctoral research for which I sought the perspectives of men who pay for sex. I was then a Teaching Associate teaching and supervising undergraduate and postgraduate students across the Department of Sociological Studies. Previously, I worked for several years as a mental health support worker, both in a clinical setting and out in the community, for Sheffield Care Trust (NHS).

Academic and professional qualifications

• 2011– 2018: M.Ed Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, University of Sheffield. Dissertation title: Delivering Higher Education to Camp based Refugees
• 2006– 2011: ESRC Funded PhD in Sociological Studies, University of Sheffield.  Title: Paying for Sex: a socio-cultural exploration of men who engage in sexual commerce. 
• 2004– 2005: MA Sociological Research, University of Sheffield. - Dissertation title: Police Perceptions of Street Prostitution.
• 2000–2004: BSc (Hons) Computing and Management Science, Sheffield Hallam University. First Class.