Dawn is the Manager of the Schools Health and Wellbeing Improvement Research Network (SHINE) and has played a key role in the development of SHINE, working within the Complexity programme at the MRC/CSO Social and Public Health Unit at the University of Glasgow. The SHINE network aims to support schools in addressing their health and wellbeing needs, with a focus on mental health, by using a data-driven, systems-level approach to health improvement. Dawn has taken a lead responsibility for maximising the recruitment of schools who participated in the 2018 Health Behaviours in School-aged Children (HBSC) survey to SHINE and facilitating their engagement with the Network. To manage the Network’s development, Dawn has built relationships with high level key health and education stakeholders during the critical period of the early development of the Network. The SHINE network is funded by the Medical Research Council and is led by Dr Jo Inchley.

Before joining the SHINE team, Dawn had a 25 year career in teaching, culminating in her final post as a Depute Headteacher in an all-through school for 3 to 18 year old students. In this role, she had responsibility for whole-school pastoral care, safeguarding and Child Protection. Dawn was a member of the Stirlingshire Regional Child Protection Sub Committee for Independent Schools & the Third Sector and represented the Scottish Guidance Association in Nov 2017 as part of a multi-agency GIRFEC focus group discussion with John Swinney, Deputy First Minister. As a keen advocate for supporting the personal development of young people, Dawn led her school’s successful bids for membership of the international schools’ network, Round Square, enabling pupils to  participate in international conferences to share ideas and action for positive change alongside young people from around the world.

Dawn’s key professional interests are bringing people and organisations together to facilitate improvements in young people’s health and wellbeing, by providing schools with up-to-date, local data and an infrastructure to share good practice.

List by: Type | Date