Briefly, tell us about your background and career up to this point?
I did my undergraduate degree at the University of Cambridge and it was only several years later, after a couple of different jobs, that I decided to pursue clinical psychology. I qualified as a clinical psychologist in 2015, having paused to take maternity leave part way through my training. After qualifying, I worked at UCL for six years, mainly on perinatal mental health research. In that time, I also had another baby and completed a PhD part-time. I joined King’s in 2021. Despite being a clinical psychologist, I have mostly worked in research, but I have also practised clinically in perinatal mental health services and children’s social care.
Could you tell us more about your NIHR Fellowship that recently started?
My fellowship explores how to improve perinatal mental health care for families who are at risk of losing custody of an infant. These families often face significant adversity. The research will include a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods, and co-design. As part of the fellowship, I will also be working clinically in this area.
What do you do with your time outside of work?
I love to run; with friends, with my local running group and also alone. This is something I find energising and really helpful for my wellbeing. I also enjoy reading, music, spending time with my children, and seeing friends and family.
What do you think people in the Faculty would find most surprising about you?
I have several tics which I have had ever since I was a child. It is very possible that colleagues have noticed these already, but I think they mostly stay at bay when I interact with others.
What advice would you give to your 18-year-old self?
Be curious about life. Try not to worry so much. Try to be authentic rather than being who you think others want you to be. Have the confidence to question things and think for yourself.
What is your favourite thing about working at King’s?
I think I value the flexibility of my role, as well as the variety and challenge within it. Through my work at King’s, in various ways, I also encounter inspiring people, who I very much enjoy listening to, working with and learning from.
Quick-fire...
What’s the first career you dreamed of having as a kid?
Being an inventor (as a child I designed an ‘easy-squeezy toothbrush’ which contained its own toothpaste!).
What’s your hidden talent?
I can solve a Rubik’s cube, though not as fast as my daughter!
Where is your happy place?
Out on a walk or run in calm surroundings.