Dr Nicola Moran

Profile

Areas of expertise

• Mental health social work
• Policing and mental health
• Unpaid carers and mental health
• Improving social connections and mental wellbeing for people with mental health problems
• Development of mental health training programmes for non-mental health professionals (including police officers and social workers)
• Developing and delivering training on research methods
• Individual Budgets / Personal Budgets in health and social care – outcomes for service users and unpaid carers

Advisory positions

• Chair of the Independent Practice Panel (2023-date)
• Member of the Exceptional Circumstances Committee (2023-date)
• Deputy Chair of the SPSW Departmental Ethics Committee
• Member of the ESRC Peer Review College

Academic biography

My teaching and research interests lie predominantly around the field of mental health: communicating with people in mental distress, unpaid carers and mental health, the interface of mental health and the criminal justice system, social interventions for people experiencing mental ill health, and mental health training for non-mental health professionals (including police officers and social workers).

I am the module lead for ‘Enabling Places and Spaces: Social perspectives on disability and mental health’ (from 2023), and deliver some mental health content on other modules.  Previously, I was the module lead for the Practice Research module and the academic coordinator for year two of the MA in Social Work Practice (Think Ahead). During this time, I also supervised 45 MA students undertaking empirical research studies, a number of which have been published, and was awarded Supervisor of the Year 2021.

In addition to teaching, I have been a qualitative researcher for over 20 years post-PhD, specialising in evaluations of interventions in health and social care. Although I am predominantly a qualitative researcher I have experience of using a range of research techniques and methodologies, including interviews, focus groups and workshops, randomised controlled trials and quasi-experimental trials, systematic reviews and scoping reviews, questionnaires and surveys. Studies have included children and young people, working age and older adults, service users, carers, and practitioners. I also have substantial experience in working with non-academic partners. This includes work with mental health trusts, police forces, Local Authorities and NHS Trusts in England, health and social care services across Europe, and an organisation providing social services in the United States.

Research

Current research

• An evaluation of support for unpaid carers funded through the Better Care Fund (2023-2024).  Nicola is a Co-Investigator on this study which explores support for unpaid carers funded through the Better Care Fund (BCF) in England. The study includes the analysis of local BCF-carer plans and publicly-available data returns; mapping of stakeholders; literature and data review; qualitative interviews with practitioners involved in delivering or commissioning support; and findings workshops.  The study is funded by the NIHR Policy Research Programme (NIHR205961) and is a partnership between the Care Policy and Evaluation Centre at LSE, the University of York, IPC, Kings Fund and Survivors Network.  The study aims to better understand the use and impact of support for unpaid carers, specifically the support funded through the Better Care Fund (BCF; government money for local areas to improve support for carers). We aim to understand what types of BCF-funded carers’ support there are across England, any differences across areas, and which carers are, or are not, receiving this support. We also want to understand how local areas choose to use BCF money to support carers, which groups are targeted, and which outcomes are prioritised.
• Section 17 Leave: Supporting unpaid carers (2020-2023), This study aims to develop a standard to define the support to be provided to carers before, during and after periods of s.17 leave (when a patient detained under the Mental Health Act 1983 is permitted temporary leave from hospital), and test if it shows promise in practice. The study is funded by the NIHR SSCR.

Recent research projects

• Connecting People in the USA: adapting the Connecting People model to support social workers to enhance the social capital and mental wellbeing of homeless and prison populations in the state of New Jersey (Webber, M., Rodgers, L., Tartaro, C. and Moran, N., 2019-22). Funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, USA.
• Evaluating the effectiveness of face-to-face versus telephone tutorials for distance learners (Moran, 2019- 20). Unfunded.
• Embedding Mental Health Support within Police District Control Rooms: developing an evaluation framework for innovative multiagency responses (Hughes, N., Hobbs, E. and Moran, N., 2019-2020). Funded by the N8 Policy Research Programme.
• Supervised 45 MA student empirical research projects around mental health (2017-21), including social workers’ perspectives on the ethical and privacy implications of utilising service users’ social media; practitioner views of the reasons behind the increase in rates of detention under the Mental Health Act; unpaid carers’ experiences of involvement in planning s.17 leave for people detained under the Mental Health Act 1983; services users’ experiences of a psycho-education group for people experiencing first
  episode psychosis; links between physical and mental health and access to services; service user and practitioner views on mental health practitioners disclosing their own mental health conditions; social workers’ perspectives on wellbeing when practising in hospital versus community settings; and social workers’ experiences of remote working during the covid-19 pandemic.
• Connecting People Implementation Study: an investigation into whether the Connecting People model of enhancing mental health service users’ social capital and mental wellbeing can be implemented with high fidelity in community mental health teams in England (Webber, M., Moran, N., Ngamaba, K., Morris, D., Pinfold, V., Knapp, M. and Henderson, C., 2017-19). Funded by the NIHR SSCR.
• Co-producing, Embedding and Evaluating Mental Health Awareness Training within North Yorkshire Police: adapting the mental health training for police staff in public-facing roles (Moran, N., Scott, W., Webber, M., Kilmurray, B. and Smith, M., 2018). Funded by the ESRC IAA.
• Supporting the mental health of looked after children: using co-production to develop a training package for children’s social workers. The development and evaluation of a mental health training package for social workers working with children in and leaving care (Moran, N., Dixon, J., Webber, M. and YoungMinds, 2017-18). Funded by the ESRC IAA.
• Connect (formerly Co-Production of Policing Evidence, Research and Training: Focus Mental Health): co-development and evaluation of a mental health training programme for frontline police officers (training package developed by Moran, N., Webber, M. and Scott, W., 2015-16; evaluated by Moran, N., Webber, M., Torgerson, D., Hewitt, C., Booth, A., McDaid, C., Payne, R., Scantlebury, A., Fairhurst, C., Parker, A. and Scott, W. (2015-17). Funded by the Home Office and College of Policing via the Police Knowledge Fund.

Selection of previous research projects:

• The evaluation of the Individual Budget Pilot Projects in adult social care (IBSEN). Funded by the Department of Health, 2006-8.
• A linked study looking at the impact and outcomes of Individual Budgets on carers (IBSEN Carers). Funded by the Department of Health, 2007-9.
• Transition from children’s to adult services for children with disabilities and complex health needs. Funded by the Department of Health, 2009-2011.
• A linked study focusing on transition from children’s to adult services for children on the autistic spectrum. Funded by the Department of Health, 2011-2012.
• Taking On and Taking Over: physically disabled young adults and their care and support arrangements. Funded by the NIHR School for Social Care Research, 2012-13.

Teaching

Current teaching

• Guest lecturer, Social Work Across the Lifecourse part 1 (from 2023)
• Module lead: Enabling Places and Spaces: Social perspectives on disability and mental health (from 2023/4).
• PhD supervisor to Emma Whitfield (with Martin Webber), 2023-6.
• Tutor, Social Work Practice Skills, (from 2023).
• Research Dissertation supervisor (from 2022).
• Academic supervisor (from 2022).

Previous teaching

• Tutor, Communication Skills (2021-2023)
• Tutor, Debates in Criminal Justice (2021)
• Year 2 lead, MA Social Work Practice (Think Ahead) (2018-2021).
• Module lead: Practice Research (2017-2021).
• Development and delivery of research methods training for senior police officers. University of York, 2018-20.
• Development of mental health awareness training for police officers. University of York, 2015-17.

Examiner

• Internal Examiner (University of York, 2023)
• External Examiner (Monash University, Australia, 2022)
• Internal Examiner (University of York, 2019)
• External Examiner (Ulster University, 2018)
• BSc Criminology (University of Northampton, 2008-11)

Publications

Full Publications List

View in PURE