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Dr Phil Smith
(he/him)
- Available for postgraduate supervision
Teams and roles for Phil Smith
Research Associate, CASCADE
Overview
I am a Research Associate in the Children’s Social Care Research and Development Centre (CASCADE) currently working on a Health and Care Research Wales (HCRW) funded social care grant. This research explores the role of personal advisors in Wales and the experiences of young people leaving care. The study is being co-produced with care leavers who will complete research training in CASCADE before carrying out work on the study as part of the research team. Further information about the study can be found here: https://cascadewales.org/research/exploring-the-role-of-personal-advisors-in-wales-a-co-produced-study-with-care-experienced-young-people/
Prior to this study I worked on a HCRW funded fellowship which explored the post-16 transitions and destinations of care experienced PRU leavers in Wales. I have also worked on several other important research projects within CASCADE, including the Child Welfare and Inequalities Project (CWIP), the Social Workers in Schools (SWIS) Trial and the Looked After Children and Education (LACE) Project.
I am a qualified youth and community worker and previously managed a youth-led community radio station. My research interests include childhood studies, child welfare inequalities, professional roles and practices within social work and education settings, youth and community work, and participatory and co-produced research. I have experience of using a range of qualitative research methods including ethnogrpahic and creative approaches.
Publication
2025
- Westlake, D. et al. 2025. A Cluster randomised controlled trial of social workers in schools in England. Research on Social Work Practice (10.1177/10497315251338227)
2024
- Elliott, M., Smith, P. and Scourfield, J. 2024. The visibility of a socio-economic dimension in day-to-day child and family social work practice in Wales. The British Journal of Social Work 54(7), pp. 3391-3409., article number: bcae098. (10.1093/bjsw/bcae098)
- Bennett, V. et al. 2024. Student perspectives on school-based social workers: A mixed-methods study. Journal of Children's Services 19(3), pp. 189-221. (10.1108/JCS-04-2023-0021)
2023
- Smith, P. 2023. Leaving a pupil referral unit in Wales: care experienced young people and their post-16 transitions. International Journal of Educational and Life Transitions 2(1), article number: 14. (10.5334/ijelt.55)
- Adara, L. et al. 2023. The Social Workers in Schools Trial: An evaluation of school based social work.. Project Report. Early Intervention Foundation.
2022
- Westlake, D. et al. 2022. The SWIS trial: protocol of a pragmatic cluster randomised controlled trial of school based social work. PLoS ONE 17(6), article number: e0265354. (10.1371/journal.pone.0265354)
- Mannay, D., Smith, P., Turney, C., Jennings, S. and Davies, P. 2022. ‘Becoming more confident in being themselves’: the value of cultural and creative engagement for young people in foster care. Qualitative Social Work 21(3), pp. 485-503. (10.1177/14733250211009965)
2019
- Smith, P. 2019. A view from a PRU: An ethnographic study of pupil referral unit practice in Wales. PhD Thesis, Cardiff University.
- Smith, P. and Connolly, M. 2019. Care and education. a case study: Understanding professional roles and identities of teachers within a Welsh PRU. Cylchgrawn Addysg Cymru / Wales Journal of Education 21(1), pp. 65-88. (10.16922/wje.21.1.5)
- Smith, P. 2019. A view from a Pupil Referral Unit. In: Mannay, D., Rees, A. and Roberts, L. eds. Children and Young People `Looked After'?: Education, Intervention and the Everyday Culture of Care in Wales. Cardiff: University of Wales Press, pp. 183-195.
- Rees, G., Brown, R., Smith, P. and Evans, R. 2019. Educational interventions for children and young people in care: A review of outcomes, implementation and acceptability. In: Mannay, D., Rees, A. and Roberts, L. eds. Children and Young People `Looked After'?: Education, Intervention and the Everyday Culture of Care in Wales. Cardiff: University of Wales Press, pp. 29-42.
- Mannay, D., Smith, P., Jennings, S., Turney, C. and Davies, P. 2019. Executive Summary: The value of cultural and creative engagement: Understanding the experiences and opinions of care-experienced young people and foster carers in Wales.. Technical Report.
2018
- Mannay, D., Smith, P., Jennings, S., Turney, C. and Davies, P. 2018. The value of cultural and creative engagement: Understanding the experiences and opinions of care-experienced young people and foster carers in Wales. Project Report. Cardiff: Wales Millennium Centre.
- Anttila, V. et al. 2018. Analysis of shared heritability in common disorders of the brain. Science 360(6395), article number: eaap8757. (10.1126/science.aap8757)
2017
- Evans, R., Brown, R., Rees, G. and Smith, P. 2017. Systematic review of educational interventions for looked-after children and young people: recommendations for intervention development and evaluation. British Educational Research Journal 43(1), pp. 68-94. (10.1002/berj.3252)
Articles
- Westlake, D. et al. 2025. A Cluster randomised controlled trial of social workers in schools in England. Research on Social Work Practice (10.1177/10497315251338227)
- Elliott, M., Smith, P. and Scourfield, J. 2024. The visibility of a socio-economic dimension in day-to-day child and family social work practice in Wales. The British Journal of Social Work 54(7), pp. 3391-3409., article number: bcae098. (10.1093/bjsw/bcae098)
- Bennett, V. et al. 2024. Student perspectives on school-based social workers: A mixed-methods study. Journal of Children's Services 19(3), pp. 189-221. (10.1108/JCS-04-2023-0021)
- Smith, P. 2023. Leaving a pupil referral unit in Wales: care experienced young people and their post-16 transitions. International Journal of Educational and Life Transitions 2(1), article number: 14. (10.5334/ijelt.55)
- Westlake, D. et al. 2022. The SWIS trial: protocol of a pragmatic cluster randomised controlled trial of school based social work. PLoS ONE 17(6), article number: e0265354. (10.1371/journal.pone.0265354)
- Mannay, D., Smith, P., Turney, C., Jennings, S. and Davies, P. 2022. ‘Becoming more confident in being themselves’: the value of cultural and creative engagement for young people in foster care. Qualitative Social Work 21(3), pp. 485-503. (10.1177/14733250211009965)
- Smith, P. and Connolly, M. 2019. Care and education. a case study: Understanding professional roles and identities of teachers within a Welsh PRU. Cylchgrawn Addysg Cymru / Wales Journal of Education 21(1), pp. 65-88. (10.16922/wje.21.1.5)
- Anttila, V. et al. 2018. Analysis of shared heritability in common disorders of the brain. Science 360(6395), article number: eaap8757. (10.1126/science.aap8757)
- Evans, R., Brown, R., Rees, G. and Smith, P. 2017. Systematic review of educational interventions for looked-after children and young people: recommendations for intervention development and evaluation. British Educational Research Journal 43(1), pp. 68-94. (10.1002/berj.3252)
Book sections
- Smith, P. 2019. A view from a Pupil Referral Unit. In: Mannay, D., Rees, A. and Roberts, L. eds. Children and Young People `Looked After'?: Education, Intervention and the Everyday Culture of Care in Wales. Cardiff: University of Wales Press, pp. 183-195.
- Rees, G., Brown, R., Smith, P. and Evans, R. 2019. Educational interventions for children and young people in care: A review of outcomes, implementation and acceptability. In: Mannay, D., Rees, A. and Roberts, L. eds. Children and Young People `Looked After'?: Education, Intervention and the Everyday Culture of Care in Wales. Cardiff: University of Wales Press, pp. 29-42.
Monographs
- Adara, L. et al. 2023. The Social Workers in Schools Trial: An evaluation of school based social work.. Project Report. Early Intervention Foundation.
- Mannay, D., Smith, P., Jennings, S., Turney, C. and Davies, P. 2019. Executive Summary: The value of cultural and creative engagement: Understanding the experiences and opinions of care-experienced young people and foster carers in Wales.. Technical Report.
- Mannay, D., Smith, P., Jennings, S., Turney, C. and Davies, P. 2018. The value of cultural and creative engagement: Understanding the experiences and opinions of care-experienced young people and foster carers in Wales. Project Report. Cardiff: Wales Millennium Centre.
Thesis
- Smith, P. 2019. A view from a PRU: An ethnographic study of pupil referral unit practice in Wales. PhD Thesis, Cardiff University.
Research
Research Awards:
2024-2026 Health and Care Research Wales (HCRW) Integrated Fundings Scheme - Arm 2: Health and Social Care Services and Public Health Research: Exploring the role of personal advisors in Wales: A co-produced study with care experienced young people (principal investigator) £314,999
2021-2024 Health and Care Research Wales (HCRW) Fellowship: Leaving a PRU: Exploring the transitions and post-16 destinations of care experienced young people across Wales (principal investigator) £336,612
2021-2023 Innovation for All Funding Programme, Cardiff University: Making Sense of the SWIS Trial: Implications for Wales (co-applicant) £15,980
2016 ESRC: Wales DTP Interdisciplinary/Collaborative Small Grants Award (co-applicant) £2,000
2015 Doctoral Academy, Cardiff University: Interdisciplinary Doctoral Conference Award (co-applicant) £1,500
Current study:
- Exploring the role of personal advisors in Wales: A co-produced study with care experienced young people.
Research interests:
- Children and young people
- Social work and educational practices
- Care experienced
- Poverty and child welfare
- Youth and community work
- Alternative education provision
- School exclusions
- Creative and participatory research
Teaching
- Lectures and seminars on a range of educational topics including policy enactment; the use of participatory and creative research methods with young people; inclusion and exclusion debates; alternative provision; education inequalities and transitions
Biography
Education and Qualifications
- PhD, Cardiff University
- MSc Social Science Research Methods, Cardiff University
- PGDip/MSc Youth and Community Work, Manchester Metropolitan University
Academic positions
2019 - present: Research Associate, CASCADE, School of Social Sciences, Cardiff University
2015-2018: Research Assistant, CASCADE, School of Social Sciences, Cardiff University
Committees and reviewing
- 2023 - End Youth Homlessness Cymru (EYHC) Steering Group Committee
- Journal reviewer, British Educational Research Journal
- Journal reviewer, International Journal of Educational and Life Transitions
- Journal reviewer, Journal of Children's Services
- Journal reviewer, Sport, Education and Society
- Journal reviewer, The British Journal of Social Work
Contact Details
+44 29208 79865
sbarc|spark, Room 03.14, Maindy Road, Cathays, Cardiff, CF24 4HQ
Research themes
Specialisms
- Social work
- Care experience
- Participatory and collaborative research methods
- Qualitative Research
- Educational Research