I am a reader in interdisciplinary practice and research with families at Birmingham City University.

My Fellowship was concerned with relationship-based early intervention services for children with complex disabilities. I travelled to New Zealand to work with the Champion Centre who provide services for young children and families where premature birth, autism or other complex disabilities are an aspect of their life. I wanted to find out how their intervention programmes work and how the professionals at the centre worked in an interdisciplinary way to support families.

After completing my Fellow's Report, I was invited to talk about my findings in the UK, Moldova, Serbia, Germany, Portugal and Turkey. My findings contributed to a European policy initiative on early intervention services for children with disabilities. I organised lectures in the UK involving the Director of the Champion Centre for early childhood and nursing students. I was awarded funding to explore early intervention services in the UK for children born prematurely. I was promoted from research fellow to senior research fellow and then to reader.

I will always be grateful for the opportunity.