What is your role within ARK? 

I’ve been part of the ARK team for several years now. My PhD was supported by the ARK Ageing Programme (2014 – 2018) and I took on an Associate role in 2021 when I joined Ulster University as a Social Policy Lecturer. I’m really excited to say that I’ve recently got a new role within ARK as Policy Director!

What do you most enjoy about your role in ARK?

What I enjoy most about my role in ARK is the opportunity to engage with a wide range of social policy topics, whether it’s through the surveys, projects or resources. ARK facilitates and encourages public engagement with several social and political topics. It also brings a range of people from different sectors and the community together to share and discuss evidence-based research. I also enjoy working with colleagues in QUB to champion social policy across the two universities and I think this is a real testament to so many dedicated ARK members, especially those who founded ARK in 2000!

As a Lecturer in ARK, what is the focus of your research?

My research interests span across social care and social security. My PhD was on adult social care, looking at the concept of personalisation and exploring if and how a similar approach could be translated into policy in Northern Ireland. Since then, I’ve worked with colleagues on social security specifically Universal Credit. More recently, I worked on a project exploring women’s experience of the Cost-of-Living Crisis and also on the NHS Healthy Start Scheme. I’m also interested in ethics to ensure research is carried out to the highest standards of practice and I’m currently a member of the Office for Research Ethics Committees Northern Ireland.

Find out more about Dr Chapman’s work: https://pure.ulster.ac.uk/en/persons/alexandra-chapman-2