Research Interests

With a background in understanding health and social inequities, I specialize in local-level strategies for reducing health inequalities. I am particuarly interested exploring relational work in public health policy making and how concpets and theories from political sciences and sociology can inform public health research.

My knowledge base encompasses areas including systems thinking, power dynamics, community empowerment and health resilience. I am interested in generating evidence to support local policy makers to enact the principles of Health [Equity] in All Policies.

I am programme coordinator for the Health Inequalites Programme in the NIHR School for Public Health Research (NIHR SPHR). I also co-lead two innovative and ambitious projects under the this theme. The first aims to produce and mobilise high quality evidence on conditions and properties of systems that support action on health inequalities. The second is a co-produced study with community members and peer researchers from disadvantaged places and circumstances that aims to mobilise experiential knowledge about safe and inclusive spaces for people interacting with statutory and voluntary services.

I was a member of the research team that conducted a longitudinal evaluation of Big Local, the largest community empowerment programme implemented in England (https://communitiesincontrol.uk). My work focussed on revealing the pathways through which communities of place develop the capabilities they need to have collective control over decisions and actions that impact on their lives and health.

My doctoral research focussed on the implementation of public health policy aspirations relating to improving population health and reducing social inequality in health as an aspect of the work of local public sector partnerships. Since completing my PhD I have developed my research skills on a wide range of proejcts using participatory research and evaluation methods with communities of place and interest to support public health action.