These are the stars responsible for leading the young people's mental health reseach centre.
They meet regularly to share skills, knowledge and experience to make sure the unit grows from strength to strength.
Click on their names to find out about our backgrounds and areas of interest:
Prathiba is a consultant in child and adolescent psychiatry working in Stockport community children's mental health services.
She has an interest in the mental health and neurodevelopmental needs of children and young people in contact with the criminal justice system. Prathiba was involved in developing the mental health response following the Manchester Arena Attack (2017) and contributing to the national framework for psychosocial and mental health care following incidents and emergencies (Emergency Preparedness Resilience Response, EPRR). She continues to be research active as a visiting professor (University College London and Manchester Metropolitan University) and has been involved in a number of regional and national transformation programmes in her role as clinical advisor for NHS England.
Read more: https://www.england.nhs.uk/author/dr-prathiba-chitsabesan/
Sarah is a principal clinical psychologist, clinical academic, senior fellow of advance HE, and experienced in postgraduate programme and research leadership. Sarah is the strategic research lead for our young people's mental health research unit and a committee member of the faculty for children, young people, and their families within the British Psychological Society.
Research interests and outputs include unusual and distressing sensory experiences (e.g., hearing voices) during childhood and adolescence, help-seeking for psychosis related symptoms, workplace wellbeing in health and social care, and trauma-informed care within children's homes for care experienced young people. Sarah has published two books and a range of peer reviewed research in national and international journals. Sarah supervises doctoral clinical research in the areas of distressing sensory experiences, comforting experiences of voice hearing, early onset and first episode psychosis, and issues pertaining to decision making in CAMHS and early intervention services.
ORCID: 0000-0002-5666-1997
Contact:
@drSarahParry
Simon has been involved in clinical research in the Greater Manchester area since 2002, starting out as a research nurse in 2002 at the then newly opened clinical research facility. Prior to research, Simon was a children’s nurse in a variety of acute settings, including paediatric nephrology, surgery, burns and plastics, and as an advanced practitioner in preoperative assessment. Simon is currently the research and innovation manager at Pennine Care, responsible for the safe and effective running of research across the organisation, ensuring studies have the correct approvals, are appropriately funded and helping develop the internal capacity and capability of the trust to increase the breadth and depth of Pennine’s research portfolio.
Dr Zarah Eve
Research centre manager
Background: BSc(Hons) Psychology and MSc Family and Child Psychology from the University of Chester. PhD in Psychology from Manchester Metropolitan University.
I also work as a lecturer in the School of Psychology at Manchester Metropolitan University. While completing my PhD I have worked as a senior research assistant on a range of projects focusing on child and adolescent mental health including:
- Co-producing immersive theatre for accessing youth mental health support
- Development of a cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) serious game to help reduce anxiety and depression
- Service evaluation of young people’s wellbeing project
Areas of interest:
- Young people’s experiences of voice hearing, visions, and multiplicity
- The eating disorder voice
- The utility of video games to support young people’s mental health, with a focus on depression and anxiety
- Centring lived experience voices within research, policy, and practice
Social media links:
X: @ZarahEve_
Lucy Carr
Research assistant
Background: BSc Psychology and MSc Psychological Research Methods and Statistics from Lancaster University.
I have worked as a research assistant since 2020 in private and public health services, completing service evaluations and working across a range of projects including:
- The use of virtual reality to facilitate mindfulness-based cognitive therapy
- The effect of socio-communicative abilities on the comprehension of emotionally-laden figurative language in those rated high, and those rated low for autistic-like traits.
- STADIA: testing the clinical and cost effectiveness of a standardised diagnostic tool for young people
- i-Minds: A digital intervention to improve mental health and interpersonal resilience in young people who have experienced sexual abuse
- DEC:IDES: testing new ways to help people with psychosis make decisions around their treatment
- EXTEND: exploring the impact of duration of early treatment in early intervention in psychosis
- EYE-2: improving services for people who have first episode of psychosis
- BAY: Behavioural activation for young people with depression in specialist CAMHS
Areas of interest:
My areas of interest include:
- Young people's mental health and the impact of trauma
- Public and patient involvement within research
- Psychosis
Social Media links:
X: @_LucyCarr
Lucy Oakes
Research assistant
Background: BSc (Hons) Psychology with Placement Year and MSc Clinical and Health Psychology from The University of Manchester.
I have worked as a research assistant for several years at The University of Manchester and Pennine Care NHS across a range of projects including:
- Exploring the communication of genetic risk information to children and families
- Health and social care professionals' experiences of working with parents with a serious mental illness
- Investigating the effectiveness and acceptability of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) for adults with psychosis
- Studies to understand physical activity and dental health amongst adults with psychosis
- Evaluating crisis care pathways within CAMHS
Areas of interest:
- Improving access to effective and acceptable psychological interventions within secondary care services
- Exploring the links between physical and mental health within serious mental illness
- Improving crisis services and interventions in collaboration with experts by experience
Social media links:
X: @LucyKOakes
Aleena Akhtar
Public engagement research assistant
Background: I have completed a degree in psychology and have worked on mental health projects. I have gained experience in the field since, for instance, working on a CAMHS psychiatric intensive care unit whilst studying and working in an out-of-hours mental health service in my spare time.
Areas of interest: Early interventions and the mental health of young people are two areas that really fascinate me.
Paula Galván Rodríguez
Public engagement research assistant
Background: BSc (Hons) in Psychology at the University of Liverpool; MSc in Cognitive Development and Disorders at the University of Leeds
Areas of interest: neurodivergence, interoception, proprioception, forensic psychology, neuropsychology, trauma informed care, qualitative research.
Dr Jennifer Kujacz
Clinical research practitioner
Background: I am a newly qualified health psychologist who has recently started as a research practitioner within the children and young person’s research team. I have seven years experience of working in research within the NHS and through a variety of physical and mental health specialities.
Areas of interest: I’ve always had a passion for working with children and young people, and helping to research how the NHS can help improve the lives of people. I am particularly interested in exploring the early identification of mental health issues, the development of effective prevention strategies, and the implementation of evidence-based interventions.
Social media links: ORCID: 0000-0003-0682-2649
Ruth Warburton
Trainee clinical psychologist
Background:
2015-2018 – BSc Psychology (Hons) University of Manchester
2023-2026 – Doctorate in Clinical Psychology
Prior to starting my clinical psychology training I worked in a number of different psychological services including clinical health psychology and child and adolescent mental health services. I’m passionate about working with young people and their families and am keen to work towards involving young people in shaping psychological services.
Areas of interest: Understanding what helps or prevents young people and their families from accessing mental health support and services.
Gordon works clinically with children and young people, and has worked in CAMHS services since 2006, with roles in community, inpatient and children who are looked after services. Gordon has published his research in relation to children’s mental health and children’s services in a range of peer reviewed journals.
Sonia is an advanced clinical practitioner in CAMHS and an active member of our research community. Previously, Sonia has worked as a research nurse for the NIHR in GM. Sonia has been a panel member in legislative theatre with the Optimistic Minds study for young people with lived experience of mental health challenges.
Alison has worked for Pennine Care as a CAMHS consultant since 2011. Alison was consultant to the Horizon IP unit from 2011- 2017, before moving to the newly commissioned Pennine community eating disorder service. Alison has worked as a consultant psychiatrist for the NHS since 1995, specialising in eating disorders, depression and self-harming/emergent personality disorder in adolescents. Alison held a tutor post with the University of Manchester and completed a RCT evaluating CBT for depressed adolescents in 1993, which was the subject of her doctoral thesis. Since then, Alison has been involved in two further RCTs with the University of Manchester. Since moving to Pennine Care, Alison has maintained her research interests and has conducted a small pilot study of the utility of a questionnaire, which was designed to aid in the assessment of internet use amongst young people presenting with eating disorders. Alison collaborates in research studies relevant to her clinical expertise and remains passionate about the role of research in guiding clinical practice.
Our young people's mental health research centre now has the specialist support of Stephen from our knowledge service.
Stephen is on hand to help Pennine Care colleagues with finding the information to support research activities.
This might include literature searches, current awareness requests, providing journal articles, or, indeed, any other enquiries you can think of that would assist you while undertaking research projects.
Stephen joined Pennine Care in December 2019. His role focuses on demonstrating resources; delivering training in information-finding skills; speaking to teams and individuals; and representing the knowledge service at events.
Prior to this post, Stephen has worked in a wide range of NHS library services, including primary care, acute and community trusts. Pennine Care is his first experience of the mental health sector.
Contact details:
E-mail: stephen.edwards@nhs.net
Phone: 0791 245 5424
Twitter: @SEdwardsNHS