I am an interdisciplinary, mixed methods, health and social science researcher in the Domestic Violence and Abuse Health Group (DVAHG).

My primary research interest is healthcare and public health responses to gender-based violence. I also have a particular interest in 'DVA and...' - i.e., the intersection of DVA and other disadvantages or vulnerabilities.

Currently, I am PI on two studies: PRESSURE (PRimary and community healthcarE Staff as SURvivors of domestic abusE) with co-PI Alison Gregory, an NIHR SPCR funded study exploring support-seeking and support needs of healthcare professionals who are experiencing, or have experienced, DVA themselves. A Research England-funded sister project with a former medical student, Dr Aimee Wilkinson, has explored DVA, sexual violence, and child maltreatment among University of Bristol medical students. I am PI on CancerDA, a Macmillan Cancer Support-funded project with Standing Together Against Domestic Abuse, in which I am evaluating an intervention that aims to enhance the cancer workforce response to DVA.

Between 2018 - 2022, I was Bristol co-lead for ADVANCE, an NIHR PGfAR-funded programme that evaluated the feasibility of delivering a 16-week therapy to reduce intimate partner abuse and substance use for men receiving substance use treatment. I concurrently worked as a researcher and capacity-strengthening co-lead on HERA, an NIHR global health project enhancing healthcare responses to DVA in low-middle income countries

In 2020 I led the Recording & Sharing Domestic violence/abuse Information in Healthcare (RASDIH) project, a workstream on the Pathfinder initiative. This project led to good practice recommendations for health settings, and I continue to work on their dissemination.

In 2017 I worked on the disclosure response service at Cardiff University, receiving disclosures of domestic and sexual violence and abuse from students and signposting them to support.

Since 2012, I have also worked as a consultant for local third-sector organisations developing strategy and policy on violence against women and women’s health and evaluating local services.

Specifically I have evaluated a peer support service for young women survivors of sexual violence, an ISVA service for sexual violence survivors with learning disabilities, a befriending service for sexual violence survivors with mental health needs, and a DVA/healthy relationships service for people aged 16-25 with unstable housing.

I teach on a range of under- and postgraduate units, supervise medical students, and co-supervise doctoral candidate Satya Shrestha as part of the HERA programme. I am also DVAHG coordinator, organising team meetings and guest speakers. I was part of decoloniseUoB (@decolUoB) and co-led a mapping of decolonising or decolonising-adjacent work around the University.

If you are interested in collaboration or supervision, or would like to present at a future DVAHG meeting, please get in touch.