I am a Principal Lecturer sitting within the BSc (Hons) Mental Health Nursing team, in the School of Education, Sport and Health Sciences, at the University of Brighton.

My clinical experience includes primary care and mental health nursing in the Royal Navy, and health care management within prison settings. 

I previously worked at London South Bank University (2004-12), initially as a practice educator for the London region prison healthcare cluster. Within this role I managed 'Custodial Healthcare Training' and subsequently developed and delivered the Foundation Degree in 'Offender Care' for the London region. Whilst at LSBU I completed a sequence of part-time secondments and consultancy roles between the univeristy and several health and justice organisations such as:

• Central and North West London.
• Care Services Improvement Partnerships.
• Offender Health (Department of Health and Social Care), project managing the development of mental health awareness training for HMPPS + West Midlands Probation Service, and leading national development work on peer support / peer care in prisons. 

I have worked at the University of Brighton since 2012. During this time I co-led the mental health nursing team, and led recruitment for the field between 2013-2018. I undertook a Professional Doctorate in Education between 2015-2020, within the School of Education, University of Brighton.

I have spoken at several local, national and international conferences on a wide range of educational and practice issues. For example, in 2022 I presented a matter for discussion at the Royal College of Nursing's annual congress, Glasgow, and in 2023 at the University of Louisville on peer caregiving.

My Educational Doctorate focussed on educational approaches to develop peer support (peer caregiving) for older and disabled detainees in UK prisons. I have led three cycles of research on this topic. Other research outputs include:

• SR on interventions to reduce staff burnout in secure health settings.
• SR on methods of supporting resilience for older people in prisons.
• Secondary quantitative data analysis on death anxiety amongst US prison caregivers.

Current research activity includes ongoing collaborations with academics at the University of Louisville and University of Cincinnati, to conduct a secondary qualitative data analysis of U.S. prisoner peer caregiver programmes, and, a mixed methods study of death anxiety among nursing and allied health students. I am the early career researcher representative for the School of Education, Sport and Health Sciences.

I deputise for the ESHS's School Ethics Lead, and a Tier 1 and Tier 2 reseach ethics reviewer (2021-).

Aside from completing an MA in Practice Education (2012), I have several additonal teaching and learning qualifications, these are: Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (D2), NMC 'Registered Teacher', Practice Assessor (A1 award).

At the University of Brighton I have led academic modules on the following topics: Human Qualities in Nursing, (2014-18), Practice Learning - Mental Health, year 2 (2013-2023). I am currently module leader for Therapeutic Approaches in MH Nursing (2019-present), and Qualitative Research Methods (2021-present), and Research Theory and Application (2023-present).

I teach on several programmes, for example:  BSc (Hons) Nursing; FdSc Health and Social Care; BSc (Hons) Radiography; P.G. Cert Leading Practice Education. (I have also previously taught and assessed on the BSc (Hons) Midwifery and BSc Paramedic Practice programmes).

Quality assurance: I was a committee member for the School Standards and Quality Committee, and chaired the External Examiners sub-committee (2021-24). I currently chair academic misconduct panels. I am an external examiner for Univeristy of Manchester and Teeside University.

My teaching  interested are: research skills, mental health awareness, critical theory, critical self-awareness, emancipatory reflection, inductive and social approaches to teaching and learning.

I am interested in supervising students / projects relating to: 'mental health nursing', 'peer support', 'nursing in prison, justice and forensic settings', training, educational and worksforce issues in justice settings', 'resilience issues for people in contact with justice services', 'ageing and older people in contact with justice services' and 'peer / informal care in prison settings'.