Dr Sophie Hallett

Publication

• Date
• Type

Research

I am a social policy academic, and my expertise falls within the area of children and young people and social care. My interests revolve around aspects related to social policy analysis, care, welfare, childhood and youth. My specialist field is youth, young people and child sexual exploitation, and I am committed to informing policy and practice in this area.

My intellectual aim is to explore and understand the relationship between policy and practice – between public discourse(s), ideology, culture and lived experience, in the context of care and welfare practices, with regards to those occupying interstitial categories and marginalised spaces. I am committed to theoretically informed, empirically-driven research that is interdisciplinary, is methodologically innovative whilst sitting firmly within well-established traditions.

Current projects

Hallett, S. (2020-21) Keeping Safe: development of an Adolescent Safeguarding Training Package. Welsh Government. £35000

Hallett, S. (2019-20) Understanding and responding to child sexual exploitation in the context of out-of-home care. FACSIAR, New South Wales Government, Australia.

Hallett, S. (2020-21) From Wales to New South Wales: an international collaboration to inform and develop understanding, policy and practice in relation to child sexual exploitation (CSE) AHSS International Initiatives Fund, Cardiff University. £14000

Hallett, S. 2020. Keeping Safe – training to support good practice with adolescents "at risk and going missing”. Welsh Government. £9999.

Previous research funding

Hallett, S (PI) and Hudson, K. (2019-20) Evaluation of the ‘Gwella’ practice approach. (Further award) Welsh Government. £64763

Hallett, S. (PI), Forrester, D., and Verbruggen, J. (2016-19) Keeping safe? An analysis of the outcomes of work with sexually exploited young people in Wales. Health and Care Research Wales. £237890. Research report and resources are freely available here: https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/research/explore/find-a-project/view/1513282-keeping-safe

Hallett, S. (PI) and Hudson, K. (2016-19) ‘Gwella’: A national knowledge and practice hub preventing risk of child sexual exploitation and sexually harmful behaviours. Delivering Sustainable Social Services Grant – Welsh Government, with Barnardo’s Cymru. £219393. (Full award £1.5 million)

Hallett, S. (PI), Crowley, A., Deerfield, K., Rees, A., Staples, E. (2017) Review of the Safeguarding Children and young people from sexual exploitation (CSE) guidance. Welsh Government. £40000. Full report and executive summary can be accessed freely here: https://gov.wales/review-wales-safeguarding-children-and-young-people-sexual-exploitation-statutory-guidance-0

Hallett, S., (PI) and Deerfield, K. (2017-19) Evaluation of the North Wales CSE Victim Support Pathway and Multi Agency Hub. Barnardo’s Cymru. £9684

Innes, M. (PI) and Hallett, S. (2017) Policing responses to child sexual exploitation and abuse. Independent inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse. £9000

Hallett, S. (2016-17) Explaining what child sexual exploitation is and how it occurs. National Crime Agency. £2132

Hallett, S. (2016-17) Understanding the nature and scale of CSE and CSA in Wales. Centre of Excellence for CSA/E. £1289.

Mannay, S. (PI) and Hallett, S. (2016-17). Improving the Educational Experiences and Attainment of Looked After Children and Young People. ESRC Impact Acceleration Fund. £25000.

Hallett, S. (PI) and Innes, M. (2016-17) A new child sexual exploitation policing knowledge hub: enhancing police responses to child sexual exploitation, other forms of child sexual abuse and associated vulnerabilities in adolescence. The International Centre: Researching child sexual exploitation, violence and trafficking, College of Policing and HEFCE Knowledge Fund. £21600.

Mannay, D. (PI), Staples, E., Hallett, S., Roberts, L., Rees, A., Andrews, D. (2015) Understanding the educational experiences, opinions, attainment and aspirations of looked after children in Wales. DfES and Welsh Government. £60,000

Scourfield, J. (PI) and Hallett, S. (2014-16) Sexually exploited boys in Wales: How do we identify them and what services do they need? Barnardo’s Cymru. £3094

Teaching

I teach at both Masters and Undergraduate level covering:

• Contemporary Perspectives on Youth and Childhood;
• Citizenship;
• Social Policy Analysis;
• Ethnography;
• Introduction to Social Policy;
• Research in Action;
• Research with Children and Young People;
• Children and Childhood;
• Social and public policy: in principle and practice (student inquiry led module).

Biography

Education

• 2013: PhD (NISCHR funded studentship.) Cardiff University.
  Title: ‘Child sexual exploitation’ in South-East Wales: Problems and solutions from the perspectives of young people and professionals’. Examiners: Professor Amanda Coffey and Professor Karen Broadhurst.
• 2008: MSc Social Science Research Methods - Social Policy (distinction). Cardiff University.
  Dissertation title: ‘Agency, Subjectivity and Child Sexual Exploitation: Opportunities for Social Care Practice’.
• 2002: BA (Hons) Communication. Cardiff University.

Career overview

• Whilst working as a research associate I helped to establish CASCADE Voices– a research advisory group of young people with care experiences, run in partnership with Voices from Care. I was the trainer and facilitator for this group for 2 years.
• Whilst a PhD student I established and was co-organiser of the SOCSI policy café, with Sara Knight, in January - June 2013. The policy cafe brought together researchers, policy-makers, practitioners and lay members, to provide opportunities to network, exchange ideas, and to encourage reflection and debate about recent social science research and its implications for policy and practice.

Honours and awards

• Shortlisted Finalist - Excellence in Innovation. Cardiff University Excellence Awards. 2019
• Personal tutor of the year (Nomination). Cardiff University Enriching Student Life Awards. 2019
• Early Career Researcher of the Year Award. Wales Social Research Association Awards. 2017
• Research Innovation Award (team win). Wales Social Research Association Awards. 2017

Professional memberships

Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (from 2019)

Academic positions

• 2020 - present: Senior Lecturer (Social Policy), Cardiff University
• 2016 - 2020: Lecturer (Social Policy), Cardiff University
• 2015 - 2016: Research Associate (CASCADE),  Cardiff university
• 2013 - 2015: Research Associate, Talking and Listening to Children Project, Cardiff University.

Committees and reviewing

I am a reviewer for the following journals: Child and Family Social Work; Qualitative Research; YOUNG; Social Policy and Administration; Child Abuse and Neglect; Child Abuse Review. 

• Current: Co-Editor Qualitative Research;
• Current: Member of All Wales Police CSE Threat group;
• Current: Reference Group Member (Academic representative) Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse in England and Wales;
• 2018-19: Chair of the Welsh Government Task and Finish group for developing the new CSE guidance, definition and assessment processes in Wales;
• 2018: Guest editor, Qualitative Research special edition.

Supervisions

I am interested in supervising students whose interests see them engaging with any of the following areas:

• child sexual exploitation;
• care and the care experience;
• youth and childhood theories;
• participative and creative methodologies;
• institutional ethnography;
• discourse analysis.