Staff Profile

Background:

I am a Senior Research Fellow, NIHR ARC North East North Cumbria (NENC) Embedded Children and Families Social Care LCRN based within the Population Health Sciences Institute. 

I have been working in Academia since January 2016 and since being at Newcastle I have been involved as a co-applicant on grants generating £947, 530.82. My role within these grants has included study PI, Co-applicant and study co-ordinator, member of the steering group and qualitative researcher.

Prior to working in academia I was a drug and alcohol practitioner and I have worked within a variety of substance misuse settings (criminal justice, residential and in the community) between 2004- 2016. I also have experience of working alongside a team of Social Workers within the Emergency Duty Team addressing Health and Social Care problems across North Yorkshire and York.

Qualifications:

Ba (Hons) Criminology and Psychology- University of Northampton- 2004

MSc Criminology- Teesside University- 2007

PhD- Newcastle University- 2016 

Research Interests:

Substance Misuse

Criminal Justice

Intimate Partner Violence and Abuse

Mental Health

Young People

I am currently working on the following projects;

• I am the PI on the following projects; 'PROTECT COVID-19: Exploring lived experiences of the impact of intimate partner violence and abuse on children, affected family members and perpetrators during the COVID-19 global pandemic'; PROTECT 2: 'PaRental intimate partner viOlence and abuse: understanding what effective supporT looks like from the pEspective of practitioners supporting viCtims and survivors, and how it can be best implemented"; Bottled Up 2: "Identifying and supporting children to reduce alcohol harm" and a Gateshead Perpetrator Behaviour Change Programme evaluation.  

I have previously worked on the following projects;

• I was the project co-ordinator for SOLID (Supporting Looked After Children and Care Leavers in Decreasing Drugs and Alcohol). 
• I was the PI on a Catherine Cookson project: Understanding the journey of Looked After Children and Care Leavers in developing a Patient and Public Involvement group to participate in national research; Behavioural Insights Project: 'To improve uptake of support services for Drug and Alcohol misuse in Hartlepool' and an Alcohol Change project: Mapping alcohol use through the care system.
• I am a co-investigator on SILVER: 'Smart Interventions for Local Vulnerable Residents'; PROTECT: PaRental intimate partner violence and abuse: measurement of the risk of Exposing Children and the mental health impact'.
• I was a researcher on; ATTUNE: 'Understanding pathways to stimulant use'; SAFE SPACE: A systematic review of the effectiveness of psychosocial interventions at improving the psychological, social and physical health of the family members affected by a significant other's substance misuse.

• AESOPS project: a randomised controlled trial of the clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of opportunistic screening and stepped care interventions for older hazardous alcohol users in primary care. http://dx.doi.org/10.3310/hta17250.

• SIPS JR project looking at Developing and evaluating interventions for adolescent alcohol use disorders presenting through emergency departments. http://www.ncl.ac.uk/ihs/research/project/4086.

• ACCEPT: which is a pilot feasibility trial looking at brief interventions in a custody suite setting.

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Teaching:

I have been involved in teaching single sessions on the following modules;

MSc Fundamentals of Research module- Newcastle University

MSc Health Policy- Newcastle University

MSc Public Health Interventions- Newcastle University.

Tutor, Essential Junior rotation in Public Health, Medical school, Newcastle University

I have also delivered guest lectures in partner universities Durham and Teesside on the following courses;

Tutor, BSc Criminology (Drugs and Society module)-Teesside University

Guest Lecturer MSc Contemporary Issues in drug use- Teesside University

Guest Lecturer MSc Social Work- Durham University

• Alderson H, McGovern R, Copello A, McColl E, Kaner E, Smart D, McArdle P, Lingam R. Implementation factors for the delivery of alcohol and drug interventions to children in care: Qualitative findings from the solid feasibility trial. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 2021, 18(7), 3461.
• McGovern R, Smart D, Alderson H, Araujo-Soares V, Brown J, Buykx P, Evans V, Fleming K, Hickman M, Macleod J, Meier P, Kaner E. Psychosocial interventions to improve psychological, social and physical wellbeing in family members affected by an adult relative’s substance use: A systematic search and review of the evidence. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 2021, 18(4), 1793.
• Alderson H, Spencer L, Scott S, Kaner E, Reeves A, Robson S, Ling J. Using behavioural insights to improve the uptake of services for drug and alcohol misuse. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 2021, 18(13), 6923.
• Smart D, Jackson K, Alderson H, Foley T, Foreman S, Kaner B, Kaner E, Lancaster H, Lingam R, Rankin R, Rowlands G, Spencer L, McGovern R. What Influences Parents and Practitioners’ Decisions to Share Personal Information within an Early Help (Social Care) Context? Implications for Practice in Sharing Digital Data across Sectors. British Journal of Social Work 2021, 52(4), 2146-2165.
• Alderson H, Kaner E, McColl E, Howel D, Fouweather T, McGovern R, Copello C, Brown H, McArdle P, Smart D, Brown R, Lingam R. A pilot feasibility randomised controlled trial of two behaviour change interventions compared to usual care to reduce substance misuse in looked after children and care leavers aged 12-20 years: The SOLID study. PLoS ONE 2020, 15(9), 0238286.
• Alderson H, Kaner E, Brown R, Howel D, McColl E, Smart D, Copello A, Fouweather T, McGovern R, Brown H, McArdle P, Lingam R. Behaviour change interventions to reduce risky substance use and improve mental health in children in care: the SOLID three-arm feasibility RCT. Public Health Research 2020, 8(13).
• McGovern R, Gilvarry E, Addison M, Alderson H, Geijer-Simpson E, Lingam R, Smart D, Kaner E. The Association Between Adverse Child Health, Psychological, Educational and Social Outcomes, and Nondependent Parental Substance: A Rapid Evidence Assessment. Trauma, Violence, and Abuse 2020, 21(3), 470-483.
• Brown R, Alderson H, Kaner E, McGovern R, Lingam R. “There are carers, and then there are carers who actually care”; Conceptualizations of care among looked after children and care leavers, social workers and carers. Child Abuse and Neglect 2019, 92, 219-229.
• Alderson H, Brown R, Copello A, Kaner E, Tober G, Lingam R, McGovern R. The key therapeutic factors needed to deliver behavioural change interventions to decrease risky substance use (drug and alcohol) for looked after children and care leavers: a qualitative exploration with young people, carers and front line workers. BMC Medical Research Methodology 2019, 19(1), 38.
• Alderson H, Brown R, Smart D, Lingam R, Dovey-Pearce G. 'You've come to children that are in care and given us the opportunity to get our voices heard': The journey of looked after children and researchers in developing a Patient and Public Involvement group. Health Expectations 2019, 22(4), 657-665.
• McGovern R, Gilvarry E, Addison M, Alderson H, Geijer-Simpson E, Lingam R, Smart D, Kaner E. The Association Between Adverse Child Health, Psychological, Educational and Social Outcomes, and Nondependent Parental Substance: A Rapid Evidence Assessment. Trauma, Violence, and Abuse 2018, 21(3), 470-483.
• Alderson H, McGovern R, Brown R, Howel D, Becker F, Carr L, Copello A, Fouweather T, Kaner E, McArdle P, McColl E, Shucksmith J, Steele A, Vale L, Lingam R. Supporting Looked After Children and Care Leavers In Decreasing Drugs, and alcohol (SOLID): Protocol for a pilot feasibility randomised controlled trial of interventions to decrease risky substance use (drugs and alcohol) and improve mental health of Looked After Children and Care Leavers aged 12 -20 years. Pilot and Feasibility Studies 2017, 3, 25.