Research Team
Prof. Sharon Wright (Principal Investigator): Sharon is a Professor of Social Policy at the School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Glasgow. She is an experienced senior research leader with expertise in work-welfare transitions, the relationship between policy and lived experience, and a track record of successful policy/practice impact. She has substantial experience leading projects funded by the Health Foundation, Joseph Rowntree Foundation and the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), among others. Recently, she co-led the pioneering Welfare Conditionality project looking at experiences of welfare support in the UK.
Dr Anna Gawlewicz (Co-Investigator): Anna is a Lecturer in Public Policy and Research Methods at the School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Glasgow. She specialises in Polish migration to the UK and has worked on migrant integration, migration-driven urban diversity and migrant responses to increasingly hostile immigration regimes. Recently, she completed the Urban Studies Foundation-funded project ‘Living Together’ looking at migration and Brexit in the East End of Glasgow. She is a co-organiser of the PostCEE network exploring approaches to researching Central and Eastern Europe.
Dr Kasia Narkowicz (Co-Investigator): Kasia is a Lecturer in Criminology at the Department of Criminology and Sociology, Middlesex University. She specialises in the study of discrimination and ‘othering’ across race/ethnicity, gender and religion. Her research focus is on Poland and the wider region of Central and Eastern Europe, as well as Polish migrants in the UK. Recently, she was awarded a Regional Studies Association grant to set up a research network PostCEE connecting scholars working on Central and Eastern Europe.
Dr Aneta Piekut (Co-Investigator): Aneta is a Senior Lecturer in Quantitative Social Sciences at the Sheffield Methods Institute, University of Sheffield. She is a sociologist specialising in migration and ethnic studies, including measurement of attitudes, migrant integration and segregation. Her current research projects include: Nordforsk/ESRC project “Life at the Frontier” and Horizon2020 knowledge exchange MIGREC. Aneta is also a co-director of the Migration Research Group at the University of Sheffield.
Dr Paulina Trevena (Research Associate): Paulina is a Research Associate at the School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Glasgow. She specialises in Polish and Eastern European migration to the UK, with a focus on everyday life experiences, social and occupational mobility, geographical mobility, living and working conditions, mental health and well-being, and integration. She has a strong track record in policy-oriented research, including commissioned work for the Scottish Government, a prestigious Academic Fellowship with the Scottish Parliament, and collaboration with charities.
Advisory Board
Prof. Robert Gawłowski: Robert is a Professor of Public Policy and Administration at the WSB University in Torun, Poland. He has extensive experience in researching public administration, especially local and metropolitan governance, and relations between the central and local government. He is a councillor in the Polish Social and Cultural Association (POSK) in London.
Alicja Kaczmarek: Alicja is the founder and director of the Polish Expats Association and Centrala – the centre for Central and Eastern European art and artists in Birmingham. She is a migration activist and works on creating platforms for cultural dialogue and migrant integration.
Prof. Rebecca Kay: Rebecca is a Professor of Russian Gender Studies at the School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Glasgow. She has extensive experience in researching international migration (in particular from Central and Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union to Scotland), social security, care, welfare and gender. She is a co-founder of the Glasgow Refugee, Migration and Asylum Network (GRAMNet).
Prof. Majella Kilkey: Majella is a Professor in Social Policy at the Department of Sociological Studies, University of Sheffield, where she also co-directs the Migration Research Group. Her research sits at the intersection of migration and family studies and focuses on issues of care, transnationality, gender, masculinities and work. Current research includes the H2020-funded MIMY and MIGREC projects, and the ESRC-funded Sustainable Care project.
Dr Sarah Kyambi: Sarah is the founder and director of Migration Policy Scotland – a new, independent think tank working to promote and sustain a constructive approach to migration. She is an expert on UK immigration and integration policy, and has worked extensively advising government, funders and NGOs.