Dr Hannah Fairbrother
PhD, MA Cantab, PgDipHE, BMedSci, SFHEA
Nursing and Midwifery, School of Allied Health Professions, Nursing and Midwifery
Senior Lecturer in Public Health
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+44 114 222 2044
Full contact details
Nursing and Midwifery, School of Allied Health Professions, Nursing and Midwifery
Room 104
362 Mushroom Lane
Sheffield
S10 2TS
- Research interests
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My research focuses on socioeconomic inequalities in health and well-being, particularly as they relate to children, young people and families. This is a longstanding interest and stems from my upbringing in Sheffield, a city of contrasts in health and wealth, visiting family in Liverpool and through voluntary work in Cambridge with young mothers and with children in an underserved area of Paris.
I am particularly interested in:
- Work to understand and address the environmental, social and political influences on health.
- Public perspectives, particularly children's and young people’s perspectives, on and understandings of health inequalities and their relationship with broader societal inequalities
- The role of activism geared towards improving planetary health and promoting social justice
I mobilise a variety of different methods to explore these key interests, including critical policy analysis, systematic and narrative literature review, participatory interviews, creative workshops, observation and systems mapping.
I am on the leadership team for the NIHR School for Public Health Research Children, Young People and Families Programme, with a particular focus on public involvement and engagement work.
I co-lead the Child of the North N8 Research Partnership for the University of Sheffield, with my colleague Dr Jill Thompson.
I am the Sheffield representative for Health Equity North.
- Publications
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Journal articles
- Adolescents’ physical activity during and beyond the Covid-19 pandemic: a qualitative study exploring the experiences of young people living in the context of socioeconomic deprivation. BMC Public Health, 24. View this article in WRRO
- 204 Physical activity insecurity in children and young people at risk of marginalisation: navigating an equitable and safe research experience using co-production principles. European Journal of Public Health, 34(Supplement_2).
- Exploring the impact of housing insecurity on the health and wellbeing of children and young people in the United Kingdom: a qualitative systematic review. BMC Public Health, 24. View this article in WRRO
- Young people’s views and experience of diet-related inequalities in England (UK): a qualitative study. Health Promotion International, 39(4). View this article in WRRO
- ‘It depends on where you were born…here in the North East, there’s not really many job opportunities compared to in the South’: young people’s perspectives on a North-South health divide and its drivers in England, UK. BMC Public Health, 24(1), 2018.
- A latent class analysis of international change and continuity in adolescent health and wellbeing: a repeat cross-sectional study. PLoS ONE, 19(6). View this article in WRRO
- Young people's experiences of physical activity insecurity: a qualitative study highlighting intersectional disadvantage in the UK. BMC Public Health, 24(1). View this article in WRRO
- The impact of the newly developed school-based ‘Digital Health Contact’—Evaluating a health and wellbeing screening tool for adolescents in England. PLOS ONE, 19(1). View this article in WRRO
- Exploring the impact of housing insecurity on the health and well-being of children and young people: a systematic review. Public Health Research, 11(13). View this article in WRRO
- A latent class analysis of change and continuity in adolescent health and wellbeing in England during the decline in youth alcohol consumption: a repeat cross-sectional study. Preventive Medicine Reports, 36. View this article in WRRO
- Conducting school-based health surveys with secondary schools in England: advice and recommendations from school staff, local authority professionals, and wider key stakeholders, a qualitative study. BMC Medical Research Methodology, 23(1).
- The role of family in supporting adherence to diabetes self‐care management practices: an umbrella review. Journal of Advanced Nursing.
- Using systems thinking to understand how the South West - School Health Research Network can improve adolescent health and well-being: a qualitative process evaluation. Health and Place, 82.
- Implementing a regional school health research network in england to improve adolescent health and well-being, a qualitative process evaluation. BMC Public Health, 23.
- ‘Bigotry is all around us, and we have to deal with that’: exploring LGBTQ+ young people’s experiences and understandings of health inequalities in North East England.. SSM - Qualitative Research in Health, 3.
- ‘When I came to university, that’s when the real shift came’: alcohol and belonging in English higher education. Journal of Youth Studies.
- Do socioeconomic inequities arise during school-based physical activity interventions? An exploratory case study of the GoActive trial. BMJ Open.
- Young people’s explanations for the decline in youth drinking in England. BMC Public Health, 23.
- ‘90 per cent of the time when I have had a drink in my hand I’m on my phone as well’: a cross-national analysis of communications technologies and drinking practices among young people. New Media & Society.
- Exploring young people's perspectives on mental health support: a qualitative study across three geographical areas in England, UK. Health and Social Care in the Community.
- Creation of a pilot school health research network in an English education infrastructure to Improve adolescent health and well-being: a study protocol. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(20).
- “There’s a lot of stereotypes going on”: A cross-national qualitative analysis of the place of gender in declining youth drinking. International Journal of Drug Policy, 108.
- An analysis of English national policy approaches to health inequalities: 'transforming children and young people's mental health provision' and its consultation process.. BMC Public Health, 22(1), 1084.
- ‘It all kind of links really’ : young people’s perspectives on the relationship between socioeconomic circumstances and health. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(6), 3679-3679.
- Youth drinking in decline : what are the implications for public health, public policy and public debate?. International Journal of Drug Policy, 102. View this article in WRRO
- A critique of the English national policy from a social determinants of health perspective using a realist and problem representation approach: the 'Childhood Obesity: a plan for action' (2016, 2018, 2019). BMC Public Health, 21. View this article in WRRO
- Exploring inequalities in health with young people through online focus groups : navigating the methodological and ethical challenges. Qualitative Research Journal. View this article in WRRO
- Exploring the local policy context for reducing health inequalities in children and young people: an in depth qualitative case study of one local authority in the North of England, UK. BMC Public Health, 21(1). View this article in WRRO
- Clustering of health-related behaviours within children aged 11–16: a systematic review. BMC Public Health, 21(1).
- A systems map of the determinants of child health inequalities in England at the local level.. PLoS One, 16(2), e0245577. View this article in WRRO
- Trends in the psychosocial characteristics of 11-15 year olds who still drink, smoke, take drugs and engage in poly-substance use in England.. Drug and Alcohol Review. View this article in WRRO
- Privileges of power: authenticity, representation and the “problem” of children’s voices in qualitative health research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 19. View this article in WRRO
- System-mapping the child health system at a local level to reduce health inequalities. European Journal of Public Health, 30(Supplement_5).
- Reducing inequalities in child health: a case study in an English local authority. European Journal of Public Health, 30(Supplement_5).
- Umbrella review of family-focused care interventions supporting families where a family member has a long-term condition. Journal of Advanced Nursing. View this article in WRRO
- The problem with good news: How should public health actors respond when alcohol consumption declines?. Addiction. View this article in WRRO
- Promoting the health of children and young people who migrate: reflections from four regional reviews. Global Health Promotion, 27(4), 141-144. View this article in WRRO
- Children’s learning from a Smokefree Sports programme: Implications for health education. Health Education Journal, 79(6), 686-699. View this article in WRRO
- The decline in youth drinking in England – is everyone drinking less? A quantile regression analysis. Addiction. View this article in WRRO
- Displaying good fathering through the construction of physical activity as intimate practice. Families, Relationships and Societies, 8(2), 213-229. View this article in WRRO
- Young people’s perspectives of e-cigarette use in the home. Health and Place, 57, 157-164. View this article in WRRO
- Health experiences of children and young people who migrate – Opportunities for health education. Health Education Journal, 78(1), 96-107. View this article in WRRO
- The well-being of children in the UK, fourth edition. Children's Geographies. View this article in WRRO
- Migrant children within Europe: a systematic review of children's perspectives on their health experiences. Public Health, 158, 71-85. View this article in WRRO
- Making health information meaningful: children's health literacy practices. SSM - Population Health, 2, 476-484. View this article in WRRO
- Where are the Schools? Children, Families and Food Practices. Health and Place, 40, 51-57. View this article in WRRO
- What makes health public? A critical evaluation of moral, legal, and political claims in public health. Public Health, 127(2), 194-194.
- Creating space: maximising the potential of the Graduate Teaching Assistant role. Teaching in Higher Education, 17(3), 353-358.
- The Well-being of Children in the UK. Children & Society, 26(2), 168-169.
- Children’s understanding of family financial resources and their impact on eating healthily. Health & Social Care in the Community, 20(5), 528-536.
- Social Injustice and Public Health. Journal of Public Health, 33(4), 634-635.
- New job, new habits? A multilevel interrupted time series analysis of changes in diet, physical activity and sleep among young adults starting work for the first time. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, 22(1).
- Geographies of alcohol and generation: examining the decline in youth drinking in England through a spatial lens. Drug and Alcohol Review.
- Are changes in attitudes towards school associated with declining youth drinking? A multi-level analysis of 37 countries. European Journal of Public Health. View this article in WRRO
- View this article in WRRO
- Do adolescents' experiences of the barriers to and facilitators of physical activity differ by socioeconomic position? A systematic review of qualitative evidence. Obesity Reviews. View this article in WRRO
Chapters
- Everyday Family Food Practices, Families, Intergenerationality, and Peer Group Relations (pp. 149-168). Springer Singapore
- Everyday Family Food Practices In Punch S, Vanderbeck R & Skelton T (Ed.), Families, Intergenerationality and Peer Group Relations (pp. 1-20). Singapore: Springer. View this article in WRRO
Conference proceedings papers
- P01 Improving parent-infant relationships through one to one support: findings from a mixed-methods evaluation of the Nottinghamshire parent-infant relationship initiative, UK. SSM Annual Scientific Meeting (pp A47.1-A47)
- OP13 Tackling housing insecurity: a qualitative study with children, parents, and professionals working in local authorities in England, UK*. SSM Annual Scientific Meeting (pp A6.3-A7)
- P97 Conducting health research with secondary schools in England: advice and recommendations from school staff, local authority professionals and wider key stakeholders, a qualitative study. SSM Annual Scientific Meeting
- P95 Using systems thinking to understand how the south west- school health research network can improve adolescent health and well-being: A qualitative process evaluation. SSM Annual Scientific Meeting
- OP22 Exploring the impact of housing insecurity on the health and wellbeing of children and young people in the United Kingdom: a qualitative systematic review*. SSM Annual Scientific Meeting
- OP21 ‘It depends on where you were born, essentially, because here in the North East, there’s not really many job opportunities compared to in the South’: a qualitative study exploring young people’s perspectives on health inequalities in the UK. SSM Annual Scientific Meeting
- OP148 Prevalence of mental health, well-being, and school connectedness by gender: results from the South West – school health research network pilot study. SSM Annual Scientific Meeting
- OP134 Young people’s experiences of physical activity insecurity: a qualitative study highlighting intersectional disadvantage in the UK. SSM Annual Scientific Meeting
- Exploring the potential of a school-based online health and wellbeing screening tool : professional stakeholders and young people's perspectives and experiences. The Lancet, Vol. 398(Suppl 2) (pp S91-S91). Virtual conference, 26 November 2021 - 26 November 2021. View this article in WRRO
- 1.11-P25 Hidden voices : reflections on the health experiences of children who migrate. European Journal of Public Health, Vol. 28(suppl_1). Edinburgh, Scotland, 17 May 2018 - 19 May 2018. View this article in WRRO
Reports
- Youth Drinking in Decline View this article in WRRO
- Multidisciplinary systematic review of the relationships between poverty and stress, low level anxiety and depression across the life course. View this article in WRRO
Preprints
- New job, new habits? A Multilevel Interrupted Time Series analysis of diet, physical activity and sleep changes among young adults starting work for the first time, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory.
- Youth drinking in decline: What are the implications for public health, public policy and public debate?.
- Adolescents’ physical activity during and beyond the Covid-19 pandemic: a qualitative study exploring the experiences of young people living in the context of socioeconomic deprivation. BMC Public Health, 24. View this article in WRRO
- Research group
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I am an active member of the cross-faculty Health Equity Group and the Children and Young People’s Research Theme group in the School of Allied Health Professions, Nursing and Midwifery.
I am interested in supervising students in my research areas and welcome prospective students getting in touch to discuss potential applications.
- Grants
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Principal Investigator Sponsor Title Dates Hurley, K School for Public Health Research (SPHR) National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Promoting food security for children, young people and families accessing emergency or temporary accommodation: a scoping study 2024-25 Fairbrother, H School for Public Health Research (SPHR), National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR)
Living with Housing Insecurity 2023-25 Mason, W School for Public Health Research (SPHR), National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Reducing inequalities by improving the system within which ‘at-risk’ young people access, and engage with, community assets that support mental health. 2024-25 Dodd-Reynolds, C School for Public Health Research (SPHR), National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Supporting safe and inclusive physical activity spaces for LGBTQ+ young people 2023-24 Winpenny, E National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Understanding needs and co-developing a workplace intervention to support healthy lifestyle behaviours in young adults 2023-24 Powell, K
Grantham Centre Go Fund Activism for Planetary Health and Equity 2023 Goyder, E Public Health Intervention Responsive Studies Team (PHIRST), National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Evaluation of the Nottinghamshire Healthy Families Programme Parent Infant Relationship Initiative 2022-23 Fairbrother, H Research England Connect and Reflect: bringing together academics interested in participatory research with children 2022 Goyder, E Public Health Research, National Institute for Health Research Evidence review of the impact of housing insecurity on the health and wellbeing of children and young people 2022 Fairbrother, H School for Public Health Research, National Institute for Health Research 2020-22 Jago, R & Campbell, R School for Public Health Research, National Institute for Health Research Creating a Health Research Network to improve young people's mental health and well-being 2020-22 Fairbrother, H & DeVocht, F Public Health Practice Evaluation Scheme, School for Public Health Research, National Institute for Health Research Evaluating the Digital Health Contact service 2020-21 Kipping, R., Powell, K. and Fairbrother, H. School for Public Health Research, National Institute for Health Research Exploring the policy context for reducing health inequalities among children and young people 2019-20 Summerbell, C., Wistow, J., Powell, K. and Fairbrother, H. School for Public Health Research, National Institute for Health Research Mapping the child health system at a local level to reduce health inequalities 2019-20 Salami, B. Worldwide Universities Network African Child and Youth Wellbeing in the Context of Migration and Displacement 2019-20 Fairbrother, H ESRC Festival of the Social Sciences Last orders: why might young people be drinking less alcohol? 2018 Thompson, J Migration Matters Festival Hidden Voices: The Health Experiences of Migrant Children by Abdulazez Dukan 2018 Holmes, J Wellcome Trust Why is youth alcohol consumption failing? A mixed methods investigation of changing drinking cultures across recent generations. 2018-2022 Fairbrother, H & Thompson, J Worldwide Universities Network Hidden Voices: Exploring the health experiences of children who migrate. 2016-2017 Swallow, V White Rose Fostering and sustaining UK multidisciplinary family-focused care across the life-course: A White Rose collaboration in long-term condition management 2016 Blank, L Joseph Rowntree Foundation Relationship between poverty and stress, low level anxiety and depression across the life course 2015-2016 Fairbrother, H Impact, Innovation and Knowledge Exchange (IIKE) University of Sheffield, All About Me: making sense of health messages in a hands-on exhibition space 2015 Fairbrother, H Research Exchange for the Social Sciences (RESS), University of Sheffield All About Collaboration: co-producing impact with a community partner 2015
- Teaching activities
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I am committed to promoting educational equity and my approach to teaching is guided by a desire to create meaningful, engaging and constructively aligned programmes of learning to enable students from a wide variety of backgrounds to thrive in Higher Education and beyond.
I enjoy teaching and endeavour to integrate learning from and enthusiasm for my research into my teaching practice. I teach both undergraduate and postgraduate students using face-to-face, distance and blended learning modes.
I lead the Public Health strand of our teaching across our suite of Nursing courses. I am currently involved in teaching related to the Social Determinants of Health, Health Inequalities, Health Promotion and Literature reviewing. I have a Postgraduate Diploma in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education and have been awarded the Senior Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy.
- Professional activities and memberships
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- Sheffield Representative, Health Equity North
- Member of the leadership team for the NIHR School for Public Health Research Children, Young People and Families Programme, with a particular focus on public involvement and engagement work.
- Co-lead for the Child of the North N8 Research Partnership for the University of Sheffield, with my colleague Dr Jill Thompson.
- Member, INRICH International Network for Research on Inequalities in Child Health
- Member, Society for Social Medicine and Population Health
- Member, University of Sheffield Health Equity and Inclusion Research Group
- Member, Faculty of Public Health
- Member, Royal Society for Public Health