With a solid background in GIS and data analysis, my role as a Research Fellow at Sheffield Hallam University centres on supporting the sport sector with enhanced research capacity and capability. I work with national governing bodies and other sport organisations, both in the UK and overseas, to provide insight and understanding on participation, event impacts, volunteering and talent pathways. In the last three years I have worked extensively with organisations on the island of Ireland, focussing specifically on research and consultancy to support the delivery of Gaelic Games.

I have worked at SIRC for over 16 years, providing data analysis and insight for a wide range of organisations in the sport and physical activity sector. Most notably, I have worked for national governing bodies of sport, including England Athletics, BADMINTON England, the Rugby Football Union (RFU) and the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). I have undertaken audits of volunteering, coaching, participation and competitive pathways, combining secondary data sources with online surveying and qualitative interviews of stakeholders and participants.

I am skilled in the creation, management and interpretation of large-scale and spatial databases, working with clients to design appropriate research tools to take advantage of new technologies. I specialise in helping organisations to understand the long-term importance of the data they collect to manage their day-to-day affairs, turning 'business as usual' into strategic plans for Ulster Hockey, the Northern Ireland Sports Forum and Antrim GAA.

I have led studies into the talent pathway of funded sports in the UK, building a database of athletes and coaches, and reporting findings to Sport England and UK Sport. I also led teams delivering two audits of pitch facilities for the governing bodies of football in Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and in the Republic of Ireland. In the last year I have completed research into the impact of increases in the cost of living on the sport sector for Sport England.

I have a long record of working with local authorities, having worked in local government for over 7 years before joining SIRC, and for a range of local authority clients since 2008. I have built up a sound working knowledge of Sport England's Active Lives and Active Places datasets, and regularly use these to develop clients' understanding of their position in the marketplace. I have also worked with clients in professional sport, including Harlequins FC and Celtic FC.

My research interests focus on the relationship between the volunteering workforce and participation, and in particular, the capacity of voluntary sports clubs to deliver participation opportunities. I am an active volunteer in club and county hockey, and regularly contribute to The Hockey Paper on the direction of the sport.

Participation, Benchmarking, Elite Sport, Spatial Analysis, Volunteering