I am the Head of School (2026) and Senior Lecturer in Social Policy (Children) at the School of Applied Social Studies. I have previously been the Co Director of the BA Early Years and Childhood Studies. Prior to working in UCC, I worked as a School Completion Coordinator with the Collinstown School Completion Programme in Clondalkin Co. Dublin. I specialise in the area of Children and Social Policy and my teaching is informed by innovative and critical discourses on childhood and my own extensive interdisciplinary and community-engaged research profile. I engage in undergraduate and postgraduate teaching and supervision and lead several Social Policy modules on the BA Early Years and Childhood Studies Programme (EYCS) and the Masters in Social Policy and Social Justice (online).

My main research interest is the well-being of children, with a particular focus on key areas of their lives such as early childhood studies, child and youth participation, and integration and inclusion. I was the Irish Principal Investigator for IMMERSE (Integration Mapping of Refugee and Migrant Children in Schools in Europe), a five-year Horizon 2020 project that began in December 2018-2023. More information is available at https://www.immerse-h2020.eu/.

I have conducted a range of research studies in the area of child and youth participation and have developed several youth-led research projects. My work has contributed to the evidence base informing the National Strategy for Children and Young People’s Participation in Decision-Making 2015–2020. Since 2011, I have worked closely with the Citizen Participation Unit of the Department of Children and Youth Affairs on a variety of initiatives, including national consultations with children and young people to support the development of government policies.

Since 2021, I have served as an expert reviewer for the European Commission on several calls, including the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF-2020-AG-CALL), the Integration Fund (2020-AG-CALL), and the CERV-2022-Child Call.

Current Modules SS1019 Children's Social and Cultural Worlds SS1020 Social Policy and Society SS3404 Social Research in Early Childhood Studies SS6316 Children and Young People module on the Masters in Social Policy Current PhD Students: Katie Marah, Aoife Horgan, Janet Dennehy and Victoria MacDonagh.

2015  Patrick Duggan  PhD Citizenship education in Irish secondary schools: the influence of curriculum content, school culture and stakeholder perspectives. Supervisors: Shirley Martin and Cathal O'Connell

2023  Ailin Quinlan PHD  Mad mums, bad dads and heroines with "street cred": an analysis of multiple perspectives on the appeal of Jacqueline Wilson's dark realism. Supervisors: Cliona O'Gallchoir and Shirley Martin

2022  Helen Louise Murphy  PHD   Vulnerabilities of trafficked rural Chinese girls in the UK asylum system: a thematic analysis. Supervisors: Shirley Martin and Jacqui O'Riordan 

2017    Patricia Stapleton  PHD    Human trafficking in Ireland - reconstituting the rights identity of trafficked persons. Supervisors: Tracey Skillington and Shirley Martin

2020  Lorraine O'Donovan  PHD   An exploration of the factors that influence practitioners' decision-making in the context of delivering the Strengthening Families Programme. Supervisors: Shirley Martin and Carmel Halton