Could you tell us about your contribution, Katherine?
In addition to my outstanding contribution to Academic Citizenship and leadership (AC&L), this promotion to Associate Professorship recognises my outstanding contribution to External and Professional Engagement (E&EP).
I have mentored 10+ early career colleagues to gain their first ever peer reviewed academic publication and/or first ever successful external funding stream bid.
I am recognised as an authority with a scholarly reputation in the fields of desistance from crime and veterans in the criminal justice system. I have been consulted on UK strategy development in these areas. My external research funding income generation is consistent with the upper quartile for the Social Work and Social Policy REF UoA (R&I). These activities are underpinned by my commitment to the generation and application of academic knowledge to addressing real world social problems exacerbated by criminal justice engagement.
My key contributions are the integration of theoretically informed frameworks as points of reference (E&PE) advocating relational and strengths-based ways of working and closing the cultural sensitivity gap between military and civilian sectors. I provide expert academic review to the Ministry of Justice’s Correctional Services Accreditation Panel and HM Inspectorate of Prison and Probation Academic Insights initiative, directly informing front-line practitioners’ day-to-day practice.
I represent the University at Armed Forces Covenant forums. I am vice-Chair of Sheffield’s Military Education Committee (MEC), who oversee the city’s University Service Units Officer training. In 2016, I led on the University signing the Armed Forces Covenant and subsequently being granted national Defence Employee Recognition (DER) awards (Bronze in 2021 and Silver in 2022). The University now provides special training leave for reservist staff, we have a ‘Reserve Forces and Mobilisation’ policy and we have launched a staff Armed Forces Support Network.
What does it mean personally to you to be an associate professor at Hallam?
It is always rewarding to have the work you are passionate about recognised.
Tell us a bit about your career story so far.
Having been employed as a dental assistant, leathercraft worker and professional sewing machinist within the paragliding industry, I left Wales for Sheffield to read for a degree. Having secured a first in Sociology from the University of Sheffield as a single mum with three children under the age of seven, I was head-hunted for a Leverhulme funded PhD at the University of Nottingham. I was awarded the PhD in 2015 and began an eight-year research centre career at Sheffield Hallam University. This involved conducting research and evaluation across the criminal justice sector. These experiences had a huge impact on me, often interviewing vulnerable people living complex, chaotic lives with extremely limited support networks, and options.
In 2015, whilst remaining research active, I moved into the Department of Law and Criminology. I enjoyed bringing the subject of criminology to life for our students. I also conducted an evaluation of an innovative veteran-specific social capital building project during the early stages of this phase of my career, which opened my eyes to the power of adopting a strength-based, agency-engaging approach to those embroiled in the criminal justice sector.
If you could go back in time and give yourself some career advice, what would it be?
Concentrate on publishing research findings from every project you conduct, ensuring wider inclusive accessibility and improving impact pathways.
What’s next? How do you want to further develop your contribution?
I will be further developing my contribution with a REF impact case study, leading on veterans in prison as peer mentors’ publications, developing a multi-disciplinary collaborative funding stream bid and an application for the Gold Defence Employee Recognition award to ensure we remain a beacon for what a university can do for – and with – its community.