Research
2012-2022
Lee is currently completing a project reviewing social needs in the Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield on behalf of Sutton Coldfield Charitable Trust. This mixed methods projects examines a range of needs across different domains of welfare and provides recommendations to the Trust in terms of areas of investment.
Lee is also part of a collaboration with Stirling University and Sheffield Hallam University exploring Welfare access, assets and debts of LGBT+ people in the UK. Funded by the Nuffield Trust the project, starting January 2022, seeks to understand the experiences of LGBT+ people when they access welfare benefits and engage with the welfare state in the UK. Our analysis will produce the world's first, mixed-methods, in-depth study into LGBT+ people and welfare outcomes in an advanced economy. It will provide important insights to improve the effectiveness of welfare support for minoritized groups hitherto neglected within mainstream social policy.
Welfare Access, Assets And Debts Of LGBT+ People In Great Britain
January 2022 - July 2023 - Funded by Nuffield Foundation
The research team will make use of longitudinal studies and cross-sectional statistical analysis of British datasets to provide new insights into LGBTQ+ experiences during the first stage of research. During the second stage, new qualitative data will be collected from across the UK to provide greater insight into the patterns found during the initial phase of work.
Revisiting the needs of Sutton Coldfield: change and future requirements
2019 - 2022 - Funded by Sutton Coldfield Charitable Trust
Research Objective: To update the 1993 study, ‘Uncovering Needs in Sutton Coldfield 1993’ – Trends, Problems, and Possible Solutions and evaluate the needs of Sutton Coldfield residents in key service areas and project future challenges.
Birmingham Living Wage analysis
August 2020 - March 2021
Analysis for Birmingham City Council to inform the Living Wage City application.
Secondary School Savings Initiative
May 2015 - January 2016 - Funded through ESRC IAA Secondment fund
Secondment to a local authority to redesign their youth savings initiative designed to emulate the Child Trust Fund.
Church of England Children's Savings Scheme
May 2015 - November 2015 - Funded by CHASM
An investigation into the development and implementation of LifeSavers, a Church of England initiative designed to tackle financial exclusion and its focus on children’s savings accounts.
PRE-2012
Welsh Credit Union research - funded by the Board of Celtic Studies. Research funding awarded to Prof. Mark Drakeford to carry out research into credit unions in Wales, on which I was the research assistant. Research output: here, here and here
Postgraduate Conference - funded by the Foundation for the Sociology of Health and Illness, Social Policy Association, Policy Research Group Cardiff Univeristy and the Welsh Institute of Social and Economic Research and Methods (WISERD). I was one of the key organisers of the Contestations and Continuities: Health and Welfare in the Big Society, postgraduate one day conference at Cardiff University. As part of the dissemination of this conference I set up this website: here
Time4Research - I was one of two organisers who devised, set-up and organise a network for researchers into time banking. Together we secured funding from the Social Policy Association and support in kind from NESTA to run a launch event for the network and continue to work on the day-to-day running of the network.