Emily Baker

(she/her)

I am a Research Assistant at CASCADE, where my work focuses on improving outcomes for care-experienced young people, particularly during the transition to adulthood. I am especially interested in how social policy interventions can support autonomy, stability, and wellbeing, while also recognising the complex and unequal contexts in which these interventions are implemented. My research is shaped by both academic training in sociology and a strong commitment to centring the voices and experiences of care-experienced people. 

My research interests include the evaluation of social policy interventions for care leavers, with a particular focus on unconditional cash transfers, financial wellbeing, and the risks and opportunities associated with increased autonomy. I am also interested in broader questions of social justice, including how systems of care and control shape young people’s life chances, and how policy can be designed to better support self-determination. Alongside this, I have a developing interest in how psychiatry and mental health care function and the intersections between mental health and care experience. 

I am currently working on a Welsh Government funded evaluation of the When I Am Ready scheme. WIAR is a scheme which allows young people to stay with their foster carers beyond the age of 18. I lead on fieldwork for this project, as well as contributing to the development of a Theory of Change to understand how the scheme works in practice.  

I have also contributed to a range of other research and evaluation projects at CASCADE, including work on the Welsh Basic Income Pilot for Care Leavers. My work has involved qualitative data analysis using NVivo, the development of realist-informed logic models, and the synthesis of findings to inform policy and practice. I have also supported research on relationships between care leavers and Personal Advisors and contributed to evidence reviews on edge-of-care services. Through this work, I have engaged with stakeholders, including Welsh Government, helping to translate research findings into policy-relevant insights. 

I have experience in qualitative research methods, including thematic analysis and realist evaluation, as well as experience in developing theory-driven approaches such as logic models and dark logic modelling to understand unintended outcomes. I am especially interested in how qualitative data can be used to build explanatory frameworks that inform more effective and equitable policy interventions.