Research Staff

The School of Education and Social Work is dedicated to supporting the ongoing development of its research staff, including post-docs, research fellows, research assistants and associates.

Helen Murray Welcome to the School of Education and Social Work.

I’m sure you will find this a creative and exciting place to work.

We have a group of excellent researchers in the School and my role is to represent your views and voices on any issues affecting you as researchers - and to communicate these back to the School Research Committee and the centrally based Research Staff Working Group. This process is part of the spirit of collaboration and mutual support we all strive to achieve in this research environment.

All too often research can be a solitary process with the experiences and challenges of new researchers often going unheard. My role is to help to ensure this doesn’t happen and that we are able to use our collective voice to influence and create mutually beneficial and positive change.

I look forward to meeting with you during your induction.

Dr Helen Murray
Research Staff Representative

****************************************************************

Research Staff Handbook 2022/23 cover For details on full support provided to our research staff see the Research Staff Handbook: 2022/23 [PDF 2.08MB].

The University Research Staff Office coordinates university-wide provision and support for research staff. They have produced Welcoming and Managing Researchers guidance to provide information for PIs/Research Staff Managers during induction. The University has also signed the ‘Concordat to Support the Career Development of Researchers’ committing us to an appropriately managed and supportive environment for research staff, with opportunities for professional development.

See further details about training and development, one-to-one support and career planning.

School Induction

We value our research staff and offer a range of activities as part of the induction. Induction within the School has three main objectives:

To help new members of research staff settle into their new environment
To help them understand their responsibilities
To help ensure the new research staff are introduced to other members of staff (professional services, academic faculty and other research colleagues)

The Assistant Research Manager, Hazel Crawford, is responsible for your induction to the School. She will explain processes and procedures and arrange an induction program for you on arrival within the school/department.

Within the first couple of weeks, you will be meeting the School's Director of Research and Knowledge Exchange (DRaKE), the Research Staff Representatives, Departmental Research Leads, your Principal Investigator (PI), the Head of Department, Research Centre Directors, and any other members of faculty and Professional Services staff in the School deemed relevant. In addition to receiving day-to-day support from your principal investigator/supervisor, you will also be assigned a research mentor who will be available to meet with you periodically for advice and support as part of your allocation of five (pro rata) career development days. The allocation of research mentor will be done within the first month of your arrival.

Start of Contract Discussion

Once you have settled into your new role and the School, the Assistant Research Manager will get in touch with you - and your Principal Investigator/Manager - to remind you to have your ‘start of contract’ discussion. It is recommended that this discussion takes place fairly quickly - ideally within the first month of your research contract - for the agreement of initial research and career development objectives. To support you in planning your professional development you should refer to the Research Staff Professional Development Guidance.

The process will help you to establish yourself quickly in your new role, and identify any training/developmental requirements needed to support you in your role and future career aspirations. Youmight want to look at the guidance and templates to support your start of contract objective-setting and career development discussion to help you prepare.

Research Mentoring

In addition to receiving day-to-day support from the principal investigator/supervisor, our research staff will also be assigned a research mentor who will be available to meet with you periodically for advice and support as part of your five (pro rata) career development days allocation. Some of the benefits of a one-to-one mentoring relationship are:

Having a supportive relationship with someone outside of your line management, with whom you can explore and progress professional development goals
Having the opportunity to learn from a more experienced colleague(s)
Tailored support and guidance appropriate to your situation/career stage
Confidential and objective discussions

Engaging with Individual Research Plans

The School of Education and Social Work is committed to ensuring that its Research Staff are fully engaged with its research culture and practices. Part of this process is an annual opportunity to reflect on your research activity over the previous year and consider how far your research aims have been realised, obstacles and facilitators. This exercise - undertaken with your research mentor - should be seen as an opportunity for research development, as well as a mechanism for capturing collective intelligence that will inform research planning as well as your training/ development requirements for the following year.

The Assistant Research Manager will send details of your Individual Research Plan to you in May each year. This is the trigger to arrange a meeting with your research mentor and to complete the form: FORMS - Individual Research Plan 2023 [DOC 57.50KB]

Career Development Days

Every member of research staff in the School of Education and Social Work (and the University as a whole) is entitled to ten career development days per year (pro rata for part-time staff). These can be used for a variety of career-related activities, including meeting with a research mentor (see above) and attending career development training sessions - such as those organised by the University’s Research Staff Office. More information about training sessions can be found on the staff 'Training and development' web pages.

You are encouraged to take ownership of your career, identifying opportunities to work towards career goals by utilising these Career Development days. You may wish to consider opportunities to develop your awareness and experience of the wider research system through, for example, knowledge exchange, policy development, public engagement and/or becoming member of various groups and forums - within your School or across the University, such as Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI), Research Committees, etc.

You might also consider putting yourself forward to be a Research Staff rep for the School and in so doing be the voice of the research staff community, taking ideas and concerns forward to the School Research Committee and University Research Staff working group.

Research Seminars

The School hosts a number of high-profile seminars during term time as part of the ESW Open Seminar Series. Research seminars, hosted by one of the School’s six research centres and presented by in-house as well as external speakers. Participation is free and the seminars are open to all. They are advertised on Broadcast, on the relevant research centre website and on our two Department websites, via posters in Essex House and via the plasma screen in Essex House reception.

The centres also run a range of other activities such as reading groups, impact events and training workshops. You’re warmly invited to get involved in these and other events, which are normally advertised on the School and Department mailing lists. Please contact centre directors if you have ideas for events or would like to get more involved with the work of any of the centres.

Teaching

Depending on your research funder, it is anticipated that research staff will be able to undertake a small amount of teaching, and or supervision activity (to be negotiated with the PI and Head of Department), to support their professional development. This may include one-off lectures, or supervision of undergraduate or masters dissertations.

Research staff new to teaching will be required to take the University’s ‘Starting to Teach’ module from their allocation of career development days.

Printing, Office Space and Access to Essex House

Printing

All Multi-Functional Devices (MFDs) located across the campus and in each building have a 'secure printing' facility. To use the new MFDs, you’ll need to load a new printer driver, as follows:

Click the windows “Start” button
Where it says “Search programs and files”, type in \\anuosprt01.uosprinting.com
Double click on UoS_Secure_Print_Letter
…wait for a couple of minutes…
Double click on UoS_Secure_Print
Close the windows that pop open.
Probably set the new printer, UoS_Secure_Print as your default (once set up and ready to go) – On the Devices and Printers option.
Then send all prints to this print queue, and you’ll be able to print on any of the MFDs

Workspace

You will be offered workspace by your Principal Investigator, in conjunction with the School Administrator. It is likely the space may be shared with other research staff colleagues.

Access to Essex House

The normal open hours of the building are 8.30am - 4.30pm on weekdays.

If you wish to gain access to Essex House outside these hours you must record your presence and notify the University Security Services office:

call (01273) 678234

email security@sef.fm

This is so security staff know to try to find you in the event of an emergency. Sussex Estates and Facilities operates a 24-hour a day, 365 days a year security service for the University.

On leaving, please check that the door of the office you were using is locked and all lights are turned off.

New Researcher Showcase

The School has a number of Research Fellows and has created opportunities for them to present their ideas and expertise to its research community.

Researcher Showcases are informal collaborations with the School's research staff network and it is hoped that they will take place regularly throughout term, ensuring that as many individuals as possible are aware of and have the chance to benefit from the amazing talent coming into the school through funded projects. They also offer opportunities for Research Fellows themselves to feel more of a part of the School's research community.

The first showcase was on 9 December 2020 at which Brenda Hayanga and Sarah Stopforth presented their ideas and methodological expertise. Another was on 13 May 2021 presented by Helen Murray, and May Nasrawy. Details of the next event will be shown here in due course, or you can contact eswpgradmin@sussex.ac.uk.

End of Contract Support

As you approach the end of your contract, you should arrange a meeting with your line manager (usually your PI) to discuss your next steps. You should also discuss your training and development needs and longer term career plans (looking beyond the end of your contract) as part of your reflections and discussions with (a) your line manager in annual appraisals, and (b) with your mentor (as part of your IRPs).

You will be formally notified by HR when your contract is coming to an end. If you would like more specialised or specific advice, you can make an appointment with our HR business partner (currently Ben Spencer: b.spencer@sussex.ac.uk) who can also talk to you about the University's redeployment procedure.

ESW Research Staff

	Dr Claire Durrant Claire is a Research Fellow for the Always Hope evaluation, a project which aims to reduce reoffending and improve outcomes for young men aged 18-25 with experience of both care and prison. Her main research interests relate to childhood, wellbeing, education, special educational needs & disability (SEND) and inclusion. Claire’s doctoral research explored how young people experiencing severe dyslexic difficulties construct a sense of self and personal identity through social interaction with institutions and significant people - such as parents/carers, teachers and peers, and within historical and cultural contexts. Prior to completing her PhD, Claire had a long career in social research, in which she worked on projects for government departments, local authorities, universities, the media and voluntary organisations.
	Dr Roni Eyal-Lubling Roni is a Research Fellow on the Trauma-informed Practice strand of The Innovate Project, a four-year long ESRC-funded research project led by Professor Michelle Lefevre exploring innovation in practice and services for young people exposed to extra-familial risk and harm. Roni is a social worker-sociologist whose research and practice are situated at the intersection of several bodies of knowledge – youth studies, feminist social work, poverty and social marginalization, labour market participation, and intergenerational relations. Roni has substantial research and practice experience with young adults at risk, particularly marginalized adolescent girls and young women, and she co-founded the Youth Studies Community under the Israeli Sociological Association.
	Ruth Goodman: Research Fellow, Education
	Nathalie Huegler Nathalie is a Research Fellow on the four-year ESRC funded Innovate Project looking at innovation in social care services for young people experiencing extra-familial risks and harm. Nathalie trained as a social worker and social pedagogue in Germany, and has particular interests in social work with adolescents and international perspectives.”
	Anna Hutchings Anna is a Research Assistant on a three-year project evaluating Safer London’s Harmful Sexual Behaviour project with Dr Kristine Hickle. She is also a SeNSS Doctoral Researcher within the Department of Social Work & Social Care researching the experiences of female social workers working with boys and young men exhibiting harmful sexual behaviours. Anna has worked in the field of child sexual abuse for over a decade and delivers training via the Centre of Expertise on child sexual abuse and works as a practitioner for the Lucy Faithfull Foundation. She also teaches workshops on child sexual abuse for the Social Work MA and BA courses.
	Birgual Kutan Birgul is a researcher with a PhD in Human Geography from Bristol University. As a political geographer and ethnographer, she has expertise in contemporary politics and social movements in Turkey and is interested in theories of social change, international development, human rights, gender-justice and decolonial theory. She leads research on Turkey for the ESRC funded project Learning and Knowledge Production in Social Movements.
	Alison (Ali) Lacey Ali is a Research Fellow working on the national evaluation of A Better Start (ABS). With Professors Janet Boddy and Gill Hampden-Thompson, she will be conducting longitudinal qualitative work over 4 years with families living in ABS areas to evaluate the impact of services on children and families. Ali also works with Dr Kathryn Lester from the School of Psychology on a collaboration with the University of Notre Dame, USA and Sussex Wildlife Trust to explore the extent to which adventurous play in Forest School settings may protect against childhood anxiety.
	Brontë McDonald Brontë is a Research Assistant for the Centre for Innovation and Research in Childhood and Youth (CIRCY). She supports the Centre’s leaders, develops and organises centre activities, provides administrative support, and assists with the Centre’s contribution to the University’s research environment. Brontë was previously a primary school teacher and her PhD research is working towards developing and evaluating a community-based intervention with primary school-aged children who had/are experiencing school attendance problems during the Covid-19 pandemic. Her research interests include child mental health particularly anxiety, education, dyslexia, and parent wellbeing.
	Cindy Morrison Ciñdy is a Research Fellow in the Department of Social Work & Social Care working with Dr David Orr (PI) on a project funded by NIHR focus on “Improving collaborative inter-agency systems and practices in self-neglect “. Ciñdy has a multi-disciplinary background in nursing, occupational psychology, teaching and research. She completed her PhD in 2019, marrying Social Psychology theories and Organizational Psychology in her thesis. Prior to her PhD, Ciñdy worked as a Paediatrics nurse in hospitals; community and schools across London. She had a keen interest in the role occupational psychology plays in well-being and improving the workplace, and in research focused on safeguarding in children, young people and adults.
	Helen Murray Helen is a Research Fellow for the Political Economy of Education Research (PEER) network, an international research partnership which aims to strengthen political economy analysis of education systems in societies affected by conflict and crisis, and support the development of critical scholars and practitioners in Africa and Central Asia. Her research interests include the relationship between universities and the public sphere, the role of higher education in societies affected by conflict, the politics of education and development, and historical sociological approaches to education research. Prior to completing her Education PhD at Sussex, which looked at trajectories of the national university in Lebanon as a public sphere, she worked for a range of local and international organisations on issues relating to education justice in Palestine, Lebanon, Ethiopia, India and other parts of the Middle East, Africa and South and Central Asia.
	May Nasrawy May is a doctoral researcher in the Department of Social Work and Social Care affiliated specifically with the Centre for Social Work Innovation and Research (CSWIR) and their ‘Practice Supervisors Development Project' supporting the project’s evaluation and learning new skills by working alongside colleagues at Sussex and within the local community.
	Jessica (Jess) Oddy Jess is a Research Fellow in the Department of Education, University of Sussex, working on a participatory study with Professor Linda Morrice (Sussex) and Dr Linda Tipp (University of Brighton) and youth organisations in Brighton and Canterbury to examine the multiple ways in which Unaccompanied Refugee Children and Young People (URCYP) engage with digital resources. Jess spent the past decade working in the Education in Emergencies sector for various international non-governmental organisations, including Save the Children, Lutheran World Federation, War Child UK and UNCHR. She is a PhD researcher at the University of East London’s Centre for Migration, Refugee and Belonging where her research focuses on diverse young people’s educational experiences in emergencies and colonial legacies within contemporary humanitarian aid.
	Jeongeun Park Jeongeun is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow working on the ReThink programme within the Department of Education, a 3.5-year multidisciplinary MRC-funded research project examining mental health and educational trajectories of care-experienced young people. The project is co-led by Professor Lisa Holmes (Sussex) and Dr Rachel Hiller (UCL). Jeongeun is mainly conducting a longitudinal statistical analysis of national administrative datasets in England and Wales. Jeongeun has a background in psychology and draws on the statistical analysis of large-scale and complex data.
	Anna Ridgewell Anna is the Research Fellow for the Centre for Innovation and Research in Wellbeing (CIRW) and a SeNSS Doctoral Researcher within the Department of Social Work and Social Care. Her research examines the opportunities that children have to access the outdoors as part of their school day across both state and private sectors, and the different embedded ideologies that enable or hinder that access. Anna's research interests include green and open spaces for wellbeing, child development and older adults and wellbeing.
	Adriana Ramona Saraoru Ramona is a Research Assistant for the Centre for International Education (CIE) and a doctoral researcher within the Department of Education. She supports the CIE Directors in developing and delivering centre activities and assists with the CIE’s contribution to the University research environment. Her research interests have been influenced by her advisory and management roles in the United Arab Emirates and in London and are centred around learning, with a particular focus on teachers, communities, and the affordances of dialogue in these contexts.
	Nicky Selwyn: Research Assistant, Social Work & Social Care
	Caitlin Shaughnessy Caitlin is a Research Fellow in the Department of Social Work & Social Care working on the ‘Children’s Information’ project funded by the Nuffield Foundation. As part of this project she is focusing on enhancing the voices of young people, parents and practitioners information use in social care. Caitlin also holds research roles at the Centre for Performance Science at the Royal College of Music, and at the University of Roehampton where her research broadly focuses on the role of the arts to support well-being, inclusion, and creative expression. The voices of practitioners, parents, and children underpin her research, ensuring representation and inclusion from design to decision-making. Most recently, Caitlin has focused on creativity in the early years, working with autistic children and their families to explore how creative methods can enhance voice, communication and wellbeing.
	Dr Paul Shuttleworth Paul was awarded a SeNSS Postdoctoral Fellowship by the University of Sussex and is now an ESRC Postdoctoral Research Fellow within the School of Education and Social Work. He is also an independent social worker undertaking a year-long cross-national and cross-disciplinary project 'Understanding What Matters: Developing effective participatory methods from the research into what matters to children living in kinship care'. Professor Janet Boddy (University of Sussex) and Professor Anna Gupta (Royal Holloway, University of London) are his mentors. Having completed his PhD in 2021, Paul worked for the British Association of Social Work as a Professional Officer, as an Associate Tutor for the University of Sussex, and completed publications for journals and edited books. Paul, his research, and his innovative child-centred methodology have been featured on various podcasts. He also co-hosts the podcast 'Sarah and Paul Do Do Social Work'. He has also helped set up - and currently chairs - the first UK Jewish Social Worker Group which supports Jewish people working in social care. The JSWG also provides information and statements in order to fight the rise in antisemitism. Paul's main research interests include child participation, kinship care, permanence, child protection and welfare, social work theory and practice, Dialogical Participation and Critical Realism.
	Raymond Voyce: Research Assistant, Social Work & Social Care