Research interests
There are three core inter-related strands to Andrew’s research interests:
Geographies of disability, welfare and social care
This field of work is particularly focused on inclusive research with disabled people (preferred term in UK). A key interest is on the personalisation of social care and the reform of conventional services to become more responsive and flexible to meet people’s needs. He has helped advance a relational approach to personalisation, with his research highlighting the ways in which disabled people can be supported through networks of advocates and local allies to build meaningful lives.
This work has developed through the co-founding of a disability research platform, SPIRIT (Southampton Platform for Inclusive Research and Ideas Together) with Prof. Melanie Nind, Southampton Education School. The intention was to build a long-term working relationship with disabled people and their respective organisations across the south coast. This platform has enabled all its members to feed into a future research agenda by identifying key challenges that could be addressed through participatory research.
Through SPIRIT, Andrew has led a collaborative ESRC-funded research project examining how people with learning disabilities 'self-build' their lives with the support of family, advocates, and community assets. This project has produced several resources, including a film, two resource packs and a report, designed to create and sustain a national impact amongst disability support and advocacy organisations and social care commissioners.
More recently, Andrew has been awarded funding by the School for Social Care Research (National Institute for Health Research) to examine the experiences of homeliness and autonomy amongst people with learning disabilities living within the residential care (‘group home’) sector.
He has published widely in this field with papers in international top-ranking journals, including Health & Place, Social Science & Medicine, Journal of Intellectual Disability, and a monograph Active Citizenship and Disability (Cambridge University Press, 2013).
Geographies of the Voluntary Sector
This research area focuses largely on the management, funding, and politics of the community and voluntary sector, particularly within the context of welfare and support provision. His work in this area has helped to enhance understanding of the relational axis of voluntary sector organisations, both externally with the state and its client groups, and internally with volunteers and staff. This work critically engages with debates over the extent to which the sector is co-opted by the state by highlighting how it can and does enact localised responses. A key paper in this field has been DeVerteuil, G., Power, A., & Trudeau, D. (2020). The Relational Geographies of the Voluntary Sector: disentangling the ballast of strangers. Progress in Human Geography, 44(5): 919–937.
His interest in the voluntary sector also extends to understanding how groups come together and create networks for social encounter, informal learning, support and wellbeing. Recent work in this field involved an AHRC funded project examining the processes and strategies of community voluntary organisations involved in local heritage projects (see list of projects below).
Care & Family Caregiving
Finally, Andrew has an established research interest in the geographies of care, particularly family caregiving. He is particularly interested in the dynamic and contested nature of care as a concept within different contexts of disability, mental health and ageing.
He has published widely in this field, including a recent book chapter on the impact of Covid-19 on family carers (Routledge, forthcoming), a special issue on “Placing Care in Times of Austerity” in Social & Cultural Geography (2017), a monograph Landscapes of Care (Routledge, 2010) and a chapter on informal care in the Routledge Handbook of Health Geography (Routledge, 2018).
PhD Supervision
Andrew has co-supervised seven PhD students to completion, including Angharad Butler-Rees (2020), Eliza Garwood (2020), Sinead O’Donnell (2019), Eleni Bourantani (2018), James Lowe (2017), Josh Green (2017), and Bevis Fenner (2016).
He is currently involved in supervising the following PhD students:
- Abigail Croydon: Finding an alternative way to work: the social inclusion and capabilities young people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
- Rachel Houweling: Exploring relationships between inequality and mental health and how families experience mental health risk factors, resilience and support in England.
- Charlotte Owen: Researching access to healthcare for people with disabilities in Cambodia.
- Haozhe Pei: Examining the role of Social Enterprises in Taiwan.
- Sarah Belben: Exploring the feasibility of nature-based wellbeing interventions within primary schools in England.
Prospective students with ideas for PhD projects in any of my research areas should feel encouraged to contact me for an informal chat.
| Dates | Award Holder(s) | Funding Body | Title | Value |
|---|
|
01 Oct. 20 – 30 Feb 2023
(original start date July 2020 delayed due to COVID19)
|
Dr Deborah Chinn, KCL (PI), Dr Andrew Power, Tony Levitan (Sussex Partnership Trust) |
National Institute for Health Research (School for Social Care Research) |
Promoting homelike environments for people with intellectual disabilities living in group homes: Using Photovoice visual methods to co-produce and explore the feasibility of a user-generated homeliness checklist and toolkit intervention. |
£271,341.78 |
| 01 Mar. 2020 – 30 Oct. 2020 |
Prof. Melanie Nind (PI, Education, UoS), Dr Andrew Power, Dr Andy Coverdale (Education, UoS) |
Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Impact Acceleration Award |
Co-designing activities and resources for enhanced accessibility and impact |
£15,974 |
| 22 Feb. 2018 – 21 Feb. 2020 |
Dr Andrew Power (PI), Prof. Melanie Nind (Education, UoS), Dr Ed Hall (Geog. University of Dundee) |
Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC): ES/P011764/1 |
Reclaiming social care: Adults with learning disabilities seizing opportunities in the shift from day services to community lives |
£ 371,246 |
| 01 Sep. 2015 – 30 Aug. 2016 |
Dr Andrew Power (PI) & Prof. Melanie Nind (Education, UoS) |
Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Impact Acceleration Award |
SPIRIT – Southampton Platform for Involvement in Research and Ideas Transfer |
£10,000 |
| 01 Mar. 2015 – 21 Dec. 2015 |
Dr Andrew Power (PI) & Dr Mariela Gaete Reyes (Universidad de Chile) |
Santander Latin America – UK Award |
Geographies of Disability, Ageing and Housing in UK & Chile |
£5,000 |
| 21 Jan. 2015 – 21 Dec. 2015 |
Dr Andrew Power (PI) & Dr Ruth Bartlett (Health Sciences, UoS) |
The British Society of Gerontology ‘Averil Osborn’ Award |
SPARTAN – Self- and Peer-Advocacy Reinforced Through Active Networks |
£2,982 |
| 01 Oct. 2014 –30 Sep. 2015 |
Prof. Melanie Nind (Education, UoS) (PI), Dr Sarah Parsons (Education, UoS), Dr Andrew Power, Clare Hooper (IT innovation), & Barod |
Web Science Institute Research Collaboration Stimulus Fund |
PRICE – Participation and Responsible Innovation in Co-Design for Exchange |
£14,332 |
| 01 Jul. 2014 – 30 Jun. 2015 |
Dr Karen Smyth (PI; UEA), Dr Jon Gregory (UEA), Dr Andrew Power |
Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) |
Preserving Place: A Cultural Mapping Exercise |
£66,310.47 |
| 01 Oct. 2012 – 30 Dec. 2013 |
Dr Andrew Power (PI), Dr Ruth Bartlett (Health Sci, UoS), Prof. Graham Crow (NCRM) |
Faculty Interdisciplinary Research Development Fund |
What Do Welcoming Communities Look Like for Older Adults with Autism? |
£8,567.36 |
| 01 Oct. 2012 – 30 Dec. 2013 |
Dr Andrew Power (PI), Dr Ruth Bartlett (Health Sci, UoS), Dr Jim Wright (Geog., UoS) |
Faculty Annual Adventures Research Grant |
Unveiling the Geographies of Personalisation & Direct Payments |
£5,000 |
| 01 Jun. 2011 – 30 Dec. 2012 |
Dr Doug Andrews (PI; Mathematics, UoS), Dr Andrew Power |
The Actuarial Profession |
Responding to the Dilnot Commission: Information Gathering Regarding Long Term Care in Ten Countries, 2011 |
£40,000 |
| Nov. 2007 |
Dr Andrew Power |
Foundation for the Sociology of Health & Illness Workshop Grant 2007 |
Debates in Informal Caregiving Workshop. |
£1,000 |
| 01 Apr. 2007 –30 Mar. 2008 |
Dr Andrew Power |
Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Postdoctoral Fellowship |
Landscapes of Care: An international study of informal care and care support |
£50,581 |
| Nov. 2004 |
Andrew Power |
Royal Geographical Society (in association with the Institute for British Geographers) Conference Grant |
Emerging and New Research in the Geographies of Health and Impairment |
£500 |
| 01 Sep. 2001 – 30 Aug. 2004 |
Andrew Power |
National Institute for Regional & Spatial Analysis (NIRSA) Doctoral Research Fellowship 2001. (The Atlantic Philanthropies) |
Landscapes of Care: A Geographical Study of Informal Care & Care Support in Ireland using International Comparisons |
£50,000 |
Research group
Population, Health and Wellbeing (PHeW)
Affiliate research group
Economy, Society and Governance
Research project(s)
The TimeBank is a community initiated concept from our external partner Barod aimed at matching people needing and offering skills and at addressing problems associated with payment.
Dr Andrew PowerBuilding 44 University of Southampton University Road Southampton SO17 1BJ
Room Number : 44/2082
