I am a Reader in Human Geography at Loughborough University, UK. My research explores the geographies of youth citizenship, informal education and volunteering. This work has been recognised by the Royal Geographical Society (Gill Memorial Award, 2017) and the American Association of Geographers (PGSG, 2015) for contributions to cultural, political and historical geography.
I am a Fellow of the HEA, RGS-IBG and of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Democratic Participation’s Political Literacy Oversight Group. In 2017, I was invited to give written and oral evidence to the House of Lords Select Committee on Citizenship and Civic Engagement. I have held committee roles on RGS-IBG Research Groups for seven years, most recently as Elected Chair of the 'Geographies of Children, Youth and Families' Research Group.
I began a lectureship in Loughborough in 2012 and was promoted to Senior Lecturer in 2015, before the Personal Title of Reader in Human Geography in April 2018. I serve on the Departmental Research Committee, as Academic Lead for Geography Open Days, and as a University Teaching Assessor. I currently co-supervise 3 PhD students, with 2 supervised to completion.
Before moving to Loughborough University, I held an ESRC Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Leicester and completed an ESRC-funded PhD at Aberystwyth University (Feb 2011) where I also received an MA (2007) & BA (2006), graduating with the Gregynog & James Fairgrieve Prize.
