Research and Research Leadership
Summary
I have conducted over 50 funded pieces of research, 35 as Principal Investigator for: the British Council, Erasmus +, the European Commission, UKRI, Health Authorities, charities, and local and national governments worth over £5 million. This has included co-productive research projects with clients on probation, the prison service, drugs services, youth violence, Muslim participation in public life, multiple exclusion, entrenched rough sleeping and the experiences of BME, LGBTQ+, disabled and students with mental health issues in Higher Education. I am co-convenor of the Education UoA at St Marys was Co-convener of Social Work and Social Policy UoA at Newman 2015-2020), with institutional responsibilities for Impact Case Studies. I have been a REF External Assessor at several Institutions. I was nominated for 2021 REF panel main panel C and sub panel 20 by National Co-ordinating Centre for Public Engagement and Impact.
I was co-convener of Social Work and Social Policy REF unit of assessment 2015-2020 at Newman, for Education at Suffolk 2020-2021 and am convenor of the Education Unit at St Marys. I am co-convenor of the Youth Studies and Informal Education Special Interest group (SIG) of the British Educational Association and was a co-convenor of the sexualities (2015-17) and lifelong learning (2020-2021) SIGs. I am/ have been a reviewer for several publishers and journals, REF submissions and Impact Case Studies. I am a member of editorial board for Workability New Internationalist imprint, Research Associate of the Revolving doors Agency, Panel member for ESRC Homelessness Strand Grant Ward (2008), Member of editorial board of International Journal of Open Youth Work, Member of Homeless Link’s research Network and a Research Associate for Revolving Doors, who work with multiple and complex needs in the criminal justice system, and Inclusive Research CIC.
Successful Research Bids
Preparing for and responding to emerging drug threats, (Nov 2024- March 2025) Exploring current use of synthetic opioids including whether people are actively seeking them? What is their availability? How predictable are their effects? Are they are being openly sold as synthetics? Role: Principal Investigator, Amount: £10,000 Funding Source: Department of Health and Social Care
Exploration of people who use opiates engagement, disengagement and progress in treatment (Oct 2024-July 2025) To include What people think treatment involves, What would make treatment easier and more attractive to access, and what would make treatment better? Role: Principla investigator, Amount: £10,000, Funding Source: Home Office and Office for Health Improvement and Disparities.
Young People’s Views on the Framework for Children and Young People’s Services Delivering Drug and Alcohol Interventions (Oct 2024- Feb 2025) A participative piece of work with young people Role: Principal Investigator, Amount: £10,000 Funding Source: Department of Health and Social Care
Police-led drug referrals qualitative deep dive (Dec 2024- March 2025) Examining police referrals for individuals seeking support for their drug use. They are also interested in understanding people’s perceptions of the quality of assistance available to drug users taken into custody and their experiences during the custody process. Role: Co-investigator, Amount: £10,000, Funding Source: Home Office and Office for Health Improvement and Disparities.
Revolving Doors Lived Experience Voices Project (August 2024-2025) aim is to ensure that the voices of people with lived and living experience of drug and alcohol problems are central to government’s understanding of how recovery and treatment services are experienced Role: Research Lead and Supervisor, Amount: £145,000 Funding Source: Office for Health Inequalities and Disparities.
A study into the role of educational leadership (Youth Work and Schools) (April 2023-March 2025) working collaboratively and innovatively to implement the New Curriculum for Wales. Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount: £15,000. Funder: The National Academy for Educational Leadership (Leadership Academy).
Understanding how those working for systemic change at policy and practice levels on reducing school exclusions communicate and coordinate with each other. Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount: £15,000. Funder: Porticus and Wates Foundation
Preventing gender-based abuse: Targeting young people at risk of causing harm (2022) Partnership between Community Criminology CIC and Liverpool John Moore’s University. Role: Participatory Evaluation Lead Funding amount £10,000 Funding source: Research England.
A Fair Deal: Exploring fairness in social enterprises working with people experiencing homelessness (2022) Part of Inclusive Insight researchers’ collective. Role: Expert Advisor, Lead on the Rapid Evidence Review. Funding amount £40,000 funding source: Homeless Link.
The Developing and sharing approaches to training and building cross-sector student ambassador networks (2021) – partnership with HEIs and NGOs in Romania, London, Sweden and Suffolk. Role: Bid writing consultant Funding amount: £150,000 Funding Source: Erasmus+
Social and Cultural Capital and Street Drinking in Suffolk (2021) Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £10,000, Funding source: UKRI.
Exploring widening participation students’ motivations for studying at the University of Suffolk or not (2021) Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £10,000, Funding source: University of Suffolk
Exploring the lived experience of Widening Participation Students through the student Lifecycle (2021) Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £10,000, Funding source: University of Suffolk
Exploring Widening Participation Students Experience of using Support Services (2021) Role: Principal Investigator funding amount £10,000, Funding source: University of Suffolk
Experiences of Heteronormativity of LGBTQ+ students at Newman (2019) Role: Principal Investigator and academic partner funding amount £500, Funding source: Directorate of Learning, teaching and scholarship, Newman University.
Youth workers’ training in HEIs: approaching the study process. (2017-2019) Two-year project investigating the pedagogic practice of youth and community lecturers across Finland, Estonia and the UK, culminating in a conference and a monograph. Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £130,000, Funding source: Erasmus+.
Interventions building the well-being of students on Foundation Years (2018) Role: Principal Investigator and academic partner Funding amount £1000, Funding source: Directorate of Learning, teaching and scholarship, Newman University.
Feasibility Study into setting up youth provision in Dickens Heath (2018). Role: Principal Investigator and academic partner Funding amount £1000, Funding source: academic development unit, Newman University.
Investigating young people perceptions of needs in Dickens Heath (2018) Role: Principal Investigator and academic partner Funding amount £1000, Funding source: academic development unit, Newman University.
CATALYST: Using University Data to enhance student support (2016-2018) Two-year participatory project examining the use of data in developing initiatives to support student’s retention and achievement Role: co-investigator Funding amount £50,000, Funding source: HEA
Teaching youth work in Europe (2015-2018) Knowledge exchange programme exploring youth work teaching, supervision and curriculum development across the UK, Estonia and Finland. Role: co-investigator Funding amount £100,000, Funding source: Erasmus+.
Co-producing a youth work journal (2014-2018) Project setting up an International Journal of Open Youth Work including training academics and practitioners in peer review and the editorial process. Role: co-investigator Funding amount £200,000, Funding source: Erasmus+.
Developing Resilience with young people in the Criminal Justice System in Birmingham Exploring young people’s perceptions of developing resilience in the criminal justice system (2017). Role: academic partner Funding amount £1000, Funding source: Newman University
Capturing Youth Work Practice (2015-2017) Research and development project setting up an international journal of youth work, and a peer review process for academics and practitioners. Role: co-investigator Funding amount £180,000, Funding source: Erasmus+.
Adventure Play Work and the development of Resilience in Chelmsley Wood (2017) Examining the resilience building potential of adventure playwork, November 2016, funded through Solihull Council. Role: academic partner Funding amount £1000, Funding source: ADU, Newman University
Islam and Public Life in Birmingham, (2016) Student Academic Partnership Project examining community perceptions of public life, June 2016, funded through Newman Research Committee. Role: academic partner Funding amount £1000, Funding source: ADU, Newman University
Black Student experience, retention and achievement (2016) Student Academic Partnership Project examining Black student’s experiences across two courses, June 2016, funded through Newman Research Committee. Role: academic partner Funding amount £1000, Funding source: ADU, Newman University
Commissioning together (2014-16). A two-year research project with Revolving doors Agency. Training and supporting peer researchers to engage with and change the commissioning process. Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £125,000 Funding source: Wandsworth council
Supervising youth work: developing practice (2014). Knowledge exchange between practitioner and academic in Austria and Germany. Role: co-investigator Funding amount £180,000, Funding source: Leonardo, EU.
Disabled student perceptions and experience of support, teaching and learning, institutional study across Newman and other HEI’s (2014). Role: co-investigator Funding amount £50,000, Funding source: HEA
Service User Involvement in Prisons and Probation (2012-14). A two-year research project with Revolving doors. training and supporting peer researchers in four probations services to conduct small scale research projects and develop a tool kit for other probation services. Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £250,000 Funding source: National Offender Management Service and the Ministry of Justice
Critical Incidents in Homeless People Escaping Homelessness (2012-2013) Groundswell: London. An 18 month project working with peer researchers with experience of homelessness conducting research with entrenched homeless people on escaping homelessness culminating in the production of an ‘escape plan’ for clients. Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £50,000 Funding source: London Foundation and Lankelly Trust.
Touch: Street work with young people engaged in violence (2011-2014) A two-year £600,000 participatory research project, across Bradford, London, Graz (Austria) and Kohn (Germany), working with young people and practitioners, including peer researchers with personal experience of violence. Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £600,000 Funding source: European Commission
Approaches for ensuring the quality of training for homeless People with Multiple needs: UK Report (2009) (with Angela Jones from Inclusive Health), FEANTSA: Belgium Role: co-investigator Funding amount £125,000 Funding source: European Commission
Homeless Health Initiative report (2009) Role: co-investigator Funding amount £100,000 Funding source: Queens Nursing Institute
Client review of health services (2009) Role: co-investigator Funding amount £80,000 Funding source: Hertfordshire Primary Care Trust
Streets Ahead: good practice in tackling Rough Sleeping: client perspectives (2008) Role: co-investigator Funding amount £50,000 Funding source: DCLG
London Borough of Croydon: Client consultation report (2008) Role: academic partner Funding amount £100,000 Funding source: Croydon City Council
Borough of Telford and Wrekin: Client perceptions on homeless strategy (2008) Role: academic partner Funding amount £70,000 Funding source: Telford City Council
Client perceptions on the Homelessness strategy (2008) Role: academic partner Funding amount £125,000 Funding source: Liverpool City Council
East Midlands Homelessness Strategy (2007) (User involvement aspect) Role: co-investigator Funding amount £200,000 Funding source: Centre for Urban Studies, Birmingham University
Being supported: user perspectives on Supported People funded Services, (2006) Role: academic partner Funding amount £20,000 Funding source: Groundswell.
Developing evidence based practice in working with young people not in education, employment or training. (2004) Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £30,000 Funding source: Berkshire Connexions Service
Managing organisational conflict: developing a youth work approach, (2002-4) A two year mixed methods and comparative study looking at youth work approaches to managing conflict within organisations. Investigating projects within the UK, Northern Ireland and South Africa. Role: Co-investigator Funding amount £20,000 Funding source: Rank Foundation.
Young people’s participation in the New Health Agenda (2001) Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £10,000 Funding source: Camden/ Islington HAZ
Funding Community Groups Locally: towards a more integrated and accessible approach (2001) Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £10,000 Funding source: Camden Healthy Cities.
Position paper on user involvement (2000) Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £2,000 Funding source: Camden Homeless Forum: London
Closing the gap: a national consultation of people who have experienced homelessness - Shelter (2000) Role: co-investigator and academic partner Funding amount £100,000, Funding source: Shelter
Use of Street Services in Liverpool: (1993) Role: co- investigator Funding mount £1000, Funding source: Merseyside Street Homeless Forum
Research (Pending)
Digital Heritage Europe: Reconstructing Contested Gothic, Decadent, and Modernist Cultures, exploring contested and dissonant cultural legacies through immersive, AI-driven reconstructions of heritage sites in the UK, Italy, and Poland Role: PI, Funding Amount: £10000 Funding Source: Research England Pump-Priming (to develop a Horizon Bid)
ACCEDE (Addressing Child Criminal Exploitation through Digital Empowerment) across the UK, Poland, Norway, Sweden Ireland and Denmark, co-developing a new framing of exploitation/victimhood and offending as interactions between social conditions, coercive relationships, and institutional responses. Role: PI Amount: £3 Million Funding Source: Horizon Europe
Critical Futures: Race, Equity, and the Graduate of 2040, aims to critically analyse representation of ethnicity and graduate success in APPs using Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), Critical Race Theory (CRT), and corpus linguistics to uncover racialised assumptions in institutional narratives. Role: PI Amount: £20,000 Funding Source: AdvanceHE. Partners: Wolverhampton University, Open University, Network for Evaluating and Researching University Participation Interventions (NERUPI)
In Development
Tackling everyday violence and building everyday peace: the role of nonformal education. The aim of this research is to investigate how nonformal education can support young people in establishing locally relevant and culturally sensitive everyday peace frameworks to respond to everyday violence in nonviolent ways. Partners: Glasgow University (Lead), Chile, Mexico. Intended Funder: Leverhulme
ESRC Creating safer spaces and building everyday peace: School Engagement, The main objectives are: Increase school and community connectedness to create safer spaces and build everyday peace, Improving youth engagement and attainment through partnership working and facilitating teachers training, skills and understanding of community context and conflict to negotiate safer spaces and more peaceful environments. Potential Partners: Glasgow University, Wrexham, Youth Action Northern Ireland and Demontford University. Intended Funder: ESRC.
Research (un-successful)
Exploring the impact of including pedagogies of discomfort content within the ‘PGcert Teaching and Learning in HE’ syllabus on the confidence of HE educators in exploring/addressing/working sensitive or difficult issues with students. Role: Co – Investigator Funding amount £10,000 Funding source: AdvanceHE Partners: University of West of England, Newman University Birmingham
Leveraging the assets of people with lived experience of ADHD in the design of School based Interventions Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £300,000 Funding source: BERA, Partners: Gumley House School, Isleworth Alexandra Primary School, Kingston upon Thames
Simple solutions for complex issues: Developing Experience-informed, Strengths-based interventions for young people at the intersection of multiple disadvantage (YPIMD) Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £300,000 Funding source: Maudsley Learning Partners: Orchard Hill College and Academy Trust.
Innovative Approaches to Combatting Drug-Related Criminal Exploitation Across Europe (IACE) Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £10,000 Funding source: British Academy Pump Priming for Horizon Bid, Partners: Academics from Liverpool University, Suffolk University, Poland, Denmark, Sweden, Ireland and Romania
Amplifying Marginalised Voices through Cultural Expression: Re-imagining Civic Engagement and Community Cohesion. Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £10,000 Funding source: UKRI; Locally Unlocking Culture through Inclusive Action, Partners: SCALA, Bhakita, Swift.
the assets of people with lived experience of ADHD in the design of School based Interventions Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £300,000 Funding source: Nuffield
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and School Attendance: Educators as Researchers and Knowledge Creators. Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £400,000 Funding source: Spencer Foundation.
From Issues to Impact: Academic-Practitioner Partnership around Knowledge Creation in Youth and Community Work Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £400,000 Funding source: Spencer Foundation.
The impact of the BGFSP network and its influence over the vision of every girl to have access to football in school by 2024 Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £50,000 Funding source: Barclays, Verdict: Shortlisted.
Participatory research and evaluation of the Young Gamechangers Fund Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £150,000 Funding source: Co-operative, Verdict: Shortlisted.
Learning partner for the Future Co-operative Foundation Communities Fund Round One, Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £150,000 Funding source: Co-operative, Verdict: Shortlisted.
Setting the Agenda for Educational Research’s Impact on the Public, PALYCW Bid. (2023) Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £20,000 Funding source: BERA Research Commission Verdict: Shortlisted.
Everyday Teaching and Everyday Peace: School and Community Engagement to address youth conflict and violence (Shortlisted), Partnership between Glasgow University, De Montford University, Glyndwyr University, Ulster University and Community Criminology (2022) Role: Participatory Evaluation Lead Funding amount £600,000 Funding source: ESRC. Verdict: shortlisted, submitted to Nuffield.
Research Strategy for Youth and Community Work in the UK, Partnership between PALYCW, Nottingham Trent University and Glasgow University (2022) Role: Principal Investigator Funding amount £55,000 Funding source: UKRI Innovation Fund – Community Research Networks Verdict: Unsuccessful.
Online LGBTQAI+ Identity formation and negotiation – partnership with Bournemouth University and NGO’s in Suffolk and Birmingham (2021) Role: Co-project Lead Funding Sought: £30,000 Funding Source: eNurture Verdict: Unsuccesful
Mental Health Digital Futures and Bystanders Programme – project between support and professional services and Student Unions looking at effective support and development programmes. (2021) Role: Principal Investigator Funding Sought: £250,000 Funding Source: Office for Students Verdict unsuccessful
Improving the experiences of socially excluded disadvantaged minority young people involved with criminal justice systems and resettlement programmes – Partnership with HEIs and NGOs in Belgium, Yorkshire, Suffolk, London and Estonia. (2021) Role: principal partner Funding Sought: £300,000 Funding Source: Erasmus+. Verdict: (not submitted as Erasmus disappeared, now a Knowledge Exchange).
The new State of Ipswich – Community project with local NGOs (2021) Role: Principal Investigator Funding Sought: £10,000 Funding Source: UKRI (2021) Verdit: Unsuccessful
Global Majority staff well-being at Suffolk Role: Principal Investigator Funding Sought: £1,000 Funding Source: Suffolk Foundation Board (2020) Verdit: Unsuccessful
Approaches to addressing continuation and attainment gaps for BAME students (2020) Role: Principal Investigator Funding Sought: £10,000 Funding Source: Transforming Access and Student Outcomes in Higher Education (2020) Verdit: Unsuccessful
Impact of online teaching and COVID on widening participation students at the University of Suffolk (2021) Role: Principal Investigator Funding Sought: £100,000 Funding Source: British Academy (2020) Verdict: Unsuccessful
Understanding the relationship between Autistic Spectrum Disorder and Personality Disorder in adults likely to be on the Autistic Spectrum. (2020) Role: participatory evaluator Funding Sought: £90,000 Funding Source: McPinn Foundation. Verdit: Unsuccessful
Building a community of practice in youth work and popular education: training learning and networking across Europe and the Global South (2020) – partnership with HEI’s and NGO’s in Birmingham, Suffolk, Hull, Austria and Norway as well as the General Federation of Trade Unions and trade unions in the global south (2020) Role: principal partner Funding Sought: £408,000 Funding Source: Erasmus+ Verdit: Unsuccessful
Rebuilding civil society relationships: Hard community talking – Partnership with Citizens UK Birmingham and Local Muslim and LGBTQAI+ NGO’s (2019) Role: Principal Investigator Funding Sought: £90,000 Funding Source: UKRI (2019) Verdit: Unsuccessful
REF and other research responsibilities
Invited external assessor for a reader (Newman University Birmingham) and an Associate Professor (Nottingham Trent University) promotions
External Assessor, REF Impact Case Studies, Social Work and Social Policy, Plymouth Marjon University (2021).
Nominated for 2021 REF panel main panel C and sub panel 20 by National Co-ordinating Centre for Public Engagement and Impact.
External reviewer for Bloomsbury publications ‘Against the Dictatorship of Ignorance: Towards a Pedagogy of Resistance’ by Henry A. Giroux and ‘Freirian Approaches to Teaching Literature for Children: Joy, Voice, Responsiveness, Antiracism, & Revolutionary Love’ by Ernest Morrell and Jodene Morrell.
External reviewer for Springer publication ‘Multiple Dimensions of Teacher Educators in the Global Further Education and Lifelong Learning Sector’, by Sai Loo.
External reviewer for Academia.edu
Director of Centre for Educational Research (Suffolk 2020-2021)
Director of the Romero Freire Institute (Newman, 2019 – 2020)
Co-convenor of Youth Studies and Informal Education Special Interest Group, British Educational Research Association (2022 to Present)
Co-convenor of Post Compulsory and Lifelong Learning Special Interest Group, British Educational Research Association (2020 to 2020)
Co-convenor of Sexualities Special Interest Group, British Educational Research Association (2015 to 2017)
Member of editorial board for Workability New Internationalist imprint (2017- present)
Co-convener of Social Work and Social Policy REF unit of assessment (Newman 2015-2020.
Convenor of Education REF unit of Assessment (Suffolk 2020-2021)
Convener of Critical Pedagogy group (Newman, 2017-2020)
Editorial member of Youth and Policy Journal, 2014 – present.
Research Associate of the Revolving doors Agency
Panel member for ESRC Homelessness Strand Grant Ward (2008)
Secretariat Member of the Professional Association of Lecturers in Youth and Community Work
Member of editorial board of International Journal of Open Youth Work (2017 – present)
Mapping of homeless services in Kings Cross – Kings Cross Partnership Homeless Focus Group (KCPHFG) (1996) – Convener of steering group (Researcher – Katherine Dane)
The Changing nature of B&B use in Kings Cross - KCPHFG (1997) – Convener of steering group (Researcher – Mary Carter)
Professor.Dr Mike Seal
Professor, Researcher, Educator, Author, Youth and Community Worker and Freelancer
Where We Are
Birmingham, United Kingdon
Professor.Dr Mike Seal 