Alison Hadley

Biographic Data

ID3933104
NAMEAlison Hadley
GIVEN NAMESAlison
FAMILY NAMEHadley
SIGNATUREHADLEY A
AFFILIATIONSUniversity of Bedfordshire
VERIFIEDNo
TOTAL WORKS11
TOTAL CITATIONS4
WORKS AS AUTHOR11
WORKS AS EDITOR0
FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR2020
LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR2026
H-INDEX1

  • Co‐Producing Training Resources to Improve Healthcare Experiences for Young Women and Reduce Gendered Health Inequalities

    Open AccessAna Alonso Curbelo, Emma Rigby et al.ARTICLEHealth Expectations2026

  • Factors affecting the implementation of a whole-school relationships and sexual health intervention

    Open AccessRuth Ponsford, Rebecca Meiksin et al.ARTICLESex Education2026

    Whole-school relationships and sexual health interventions represent promising approaches to promoting healthy sexual development. However, data from a randomised controlled trial of the Positive Choices whole-school intervention demonstrate these may be challenging to implement in English secondary schools. We draw on qualitative data to examine staff perspectives on the implementation of the intervention and the factors affecting delivery. Inte…

  • Understanding the limited effectiveness of a whole-school relationships and sexual-health programme

    Open AccessVeena Muraleetharan, Ruth Ponsford et al.ARTICLESex Education2026

    Previous trials of whole-school relationships and sexual-health programmes have not reported on fidelity, reach or acceptability, despite the importance of these factors for interpreting outcomes. Our trial of the Positive Choices whole-school relationships and sexual-health programme found limited effectiveness in secondary schools in England. We aimed to understand whether sub-optimal fidelity, reach or acceptability might explain the results. …

  • Effects of a whole-school relationships and sexual health intervention on non-competent sexual debut

    Open AccessRuth Ponsford, Rebecca Meiksin et al.ARTICLEJournal of Epidemiology and…2026Cited by: 1References: 22

    BACKGROUND: Relationships and sex education (RSE) impacts some sexual behaviours but could be strengthened by incorporating whole-school approaches (eg, building engagement, providing contraception). These can prevent pregnancies and sexually-transmitted infections but are unevaluated in UK schools. METHODS: A cluster-randomised trial of 'Positive Choices' compared it with usual practice in English secondary schools. Intervention comprised: RSE, …

  • The implementation of compulsory relationships and sex education in English secondary schools

    Open AccessRuth Ponsford, Rebecca Meiksin et al.ARTICLESex Education2025

    The quality of sex education varies. In England from 2020, the government attempted to improve provision by making lessons a statutory requirement. We assessed implementation in 25 secondary schools in 2022–23, framed by May’s general theory of implementation. This identifies processes of sense-making, cognitive participation, collective action and reflexive monitoring, influenced by an intervention’s capability, stakeholder potential (individual…

  • Sexual Harassment in Early Adolescence

    Open AccessG J Melendez-Torres, Rebecca Meiksin et al.ARTICLEViolence Against Women2025References: 3

    There is little research on sexual harassment among younger adolescents or on how rates vary by gender and other student/school characteristics. Drawing on data from 50 English schools, we explored the prevalence and patterning of victimization in the past year among students aged 12-13. Of 7,060 participants, almost a tenth had experienced sexual harassment. Girls, non-binary students, and sexual-minority students reported the highest rates. Stu…

  • The mechanisms by which a whole-school intervention might improve sexual health

    Open AccessRuth Ponsford, Rebecca Meiksin et al.ARTICLESocial Science & Medicine2025References: 17

    Whole-school interventions go beyond classroom education, promoting health by modifying school environments. These can be effective in delaying sexual debut and increasing contraception use but mechanisms are poorly understood. Qualitative research within realist evaluation can explore mechanisms via building 'context-mechanism-outcome configurations', describing how interventions trigger mechanisms that interact with context to generate outcomes…

  • Student-reported relationships and sex education coverage and knowledge among a diverse population of early adolescents

    Open AccessG J Melendez-Torres, Ruth Ponsford et al.ARTICLESex Education2024

    Student-reported quality and coverage of school-based relationships and sex education (RSE) vary, with gender/sexual-minority and disadvantaged students reporting poorer provision. Experience of RSE among younger adolescents is under-explored. We examined student-reported RSE coverage and priorities and how coverage, and sexual-health knowledge and awareness of services, varies between students and schools. The data came from a pre-intervention s…

  • How young, disadvantaged fathers are affected by socioeconomic and relational barriers

    L Donald, Robert Davidson et al.ARTICLEFamilies Relationships and…2022

    This article is based on the interviews of nine young, socially disadvantaged fathers from the UK. Young fathers are more likely to experience socioeconomic deprivation and disrupted pathways towards parenthood, which affect their participation in socially accepted trajectories of ‘father involvement’. Whilst this has received some attention in research, studies have largely neglected to examine the lived experiences of such fathers directly. The…

  • Enacting whole‐school relationships and sexuality education in England

    Open AccessSara Bragg, Ruth Ponsford et al.ARTICLEBritish Educational Research…2022Cited by: 3References: 32

    Evidence from intervention evaluations suggests that achieving meaningful and lasting social, behavioural and attitudinal change from relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) in schools requires more than just a curriculum. Whole‐school approaches appear particularly promising since they work at multiple levels. For instance, they may: engage with carers, communities and local services; address iniquitous cultures and norms; change school p…

  • What and how

    Open AccessRachel H Scott, Clarissa Smith et al.ARTICLESex Education2020

    As part of a project funded by the Wellcome Trust, we held a one-day symposium, bringing together researchers, practitioners, and policymakers, to discuss priorities for research on relationships and sex education (RSE) in a world where young people increasingly live, experience, and augment their relationships (whether sexual or not) within digital spaces. The introduction of statutory RSE in schools in England highlights the need to focus on im…