People

Biography

My primary research interests are in disability studies, medical sociology, and in social and ethical aspects of genetics. I have had a long involvement with the disabled people’s movement in UK and internationally. In the context of disability arts, I have also been active in arts and culture, and was a member of Arts Council England from 2003-2008.  While at Newcastle University, I developed an interest in science communication and public engagement, and helped develop the café scientifique movement in UK and across the world, as well as promoting sci-art projects.  During my five years at WHO, I helped produce and launch key reports such as the World Report on Disability (WHO 2011) and International Perspectives on Spinal Cord Injury (WHO 2013), and was responsible for the UN statement on forced, coerced and otherwise involuntary sterilization (WHO 2014).  This grew my interest in disability and international development.

Career History

I did my PhD at Cambridge University and then worked at the Universities of Sunderland, Leeds and Newcastle, before spending five years working at the World Health Organization in Geneva.  In February 2013, I started my current post at Norwich Medical School.  I continue to consult for WHO, World Bank and other UN agencies.

1993-1996             Lecturer, University of Sunderland

1996-1999             Research Fellow, University of Leeds

1999-2008             Research Fellow, University of Newcastle, where I co-founded and developed the 
                              Policy, Ethics and Life Sciences Research Institute.

2008-2013             Technical officer, Department of Violence and Injury Prevention and Disability, 
                               World Health Organization, Geneva.

Key Research Interests

My primary focus is qualitative research about the lives of disabled people and the barriers that they face. I have led projects about disability and sexuality, life as a disabled child, quality of life in restricted growth. I am currently working on an ESRC funded project on social relationships in personal assistance, and on an ESRC/DFID funded project on the disability and development gap.  In recent years, I have also led several small research projects on aspects of mental health recovery and wellbeing.  My secondary interest is social and ethical aspects of genetics and bioethics. I have led projects about how people make ethical decisions, and about the provision of balanced information in antenatal screening. I have written books on disability and sexuality, relational approaches to disability, and genetic politics. In future, I hope to develop further work exploring disability as an international development issue, with particular emphasis on barriers to healthcare.

Research Keywords:-

Postgraduate Research Student Supervision:-

Selected publications

 Mikton C,Maguire H, Shakespeare T.  Review of interventions to prevent violence against persons with disabilities.  Journal of Interpersonal Violence 2014 DOI: 10.1177/0886260514534530

Shakespeare T, Kleine I Educating health professionals about disability: a review of interventions. Health and Social Care Education. 2013 DOI: 10.11120/hsce.2013.00026

Shakespeare T.  Disability Rights and Wrongs Revisited, Routledge, London, 2013.

Jones L, Bellis MA, Wood S, Hughes K, Bates G, Eckley L, McCoy E, Mikton C, Shakespeare T, Officer A.  Prevalence and risk of violence against children with disabilities: a systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies. The Lancet early online publication July 12 2012.

Shakespeare T.  Choices, reasons and feelings: penatal diagnosis as disability dilemmas. ALTER, European Journal of Disability Research,2011, 5: 37-43

Shakespeare T, Thompson S, Wright MJ.  No laughing matter: medical and social factors in restricted growth, Scandinavian Journal of Disability Research, 2000, 12, 1: 19-31

Scully JL, Shakespeare T, Banks S.  Gift not commodity? Lay people deliberating social sex selection, Sociology of Health & Illness, 2006, 28, 6: 749 - 767

Shakespeare T.  Disability Rights and Wrongs, Routledge, London, 2006.

Teaching Interests

I teach topics in Sociology of health and illness. Social work with disabled people. Disabled children. Disability and development and Bioethics, primarily for MBBS students and occasionally for undergraduates and postgraduates in Social Work, Development Studies etc.

On the MBBS course, I also supervise Student Selected Study options in Sociology, also Student Selected Study by Research.

External Activities and Indicators of Esteem

• Gave written and oral evidence to International Development Select Committee, House of Commons (January 2014)
• Member of Department of Health Steering Group for  Disability Matters - Disability E-Learning Portal (2013-14)
• Member of Advisory and Editorial Group, Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health Disability Matters E-Learning Portal (2013-14)
• Trustee of Equal Lives (formerly Norfolk Coalition of Disabled People) (From October 2013)
• Member of Nuffield Council on Bioethics (From October 2013)
• Member of Advisory Board of Educational Development Center, inc. (2013-2014)
• Membership of Fulfilling Potential technical advisory group, Office for Disability Issues (Department of Work and Pensions) (2012-13)
• Spoke at UN High Level Meeting on Disability and Development, New York (23 September 2013)
• Co-editor of International Perspectives on Spinal Cord Injury (WHO) (2013)
• Co-editor of UN Statement on coerced and otherwise involuntary sterilization (2012-20140
• Keynote talk at launch of Disability Care (National Disability Insurance Scheme), hosted by Commonwealth of Australia (July 2013)
• Keynote talk at Australian Applied Disability Research conference (May 2014), hosted by National Disability Services (May 2014)
• Broadcast talks on BBC Radio 4 (June 2013, May 2014, March 2015, January 2016) “A Point of View”, among other radio broadcasts
• Consultant to World Health Organization (2013) - both Department of Mental health and substance abuse and Department of Violence and Injury Prevention and Disability
• Consultant to World Bank (2014), writing paper on UK disability assessment systems
• Technical advisor to UNAIDS (2013)
• Advisor, Business Disability Forum (2012-)
• Columnist for Neue Zurcher Zeitung Folio magazine (2012-2014) - Monthly column

Administrative Posts

• Deputy year lead, MBBS Year One
• Service user involvement lead, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences