Professor Sarah Richards
Head of Suffolk Doctoral College & Associate Professor of Social Policy specialising in childhood studies
- Phone
- +44 (0)1473 338563
- s.richards@uos.ac.uk
- School/Directorate
- Research Directorate
- Sarah Richards ORCID
Sarah was appointed Head of Suffolk Doctoral College in 2021. Prior to this role she was an Associate Dean for Research in the School of Social Science and Humanities for three years. She is a Professor of Childhood Studies specialising in social policy as an academic specialism and has twenty years of teaching experience in higher education. At the Â鶹´«Ã½, she has taught across a range of undergraduate and postgraduate courses where her teaching primarily focuses on social policy and research methods. Sarah’s publications feature her work on international adoption policy and longstanding critical interest in methodological and ethical debates related to research with children. She is chair of the PGR ethics committee and a founding member of the biennial Children and Childhoods and Storytelling Conference programmes. Sarah has a PhD from University College London, an MA in Social Policy and a 1st class Honours degree in Childhood Studies and Social Policy.
Sarah has taught social policy and research related modules on postgraduate and undergraduate programmes including Childhood Studies, SENDS, Childhood and Family Studies.
Sarah’s current PhD students:
- Sian Cook, thesis focus: The use of technology in bereavement
- Anna Max, thesis focus: A critical comparative analysis of the accountability discourse in early years education in England and Finland
- Kate Sida-Nicholls, thesis focus: A critical exploration of newly qualified teachers
- Michael Bird, thesis focus: Home schooling children with special needs
Recent Research and Knowledge Exchange
- UKRI funded project on experiences of first generation HE students
- KEEP+ project exploring the library as a source of well-being.
- UKRI funded project exploring bereavement support for children in Suffolk’s primary schools
- TASO funded Evaluation of Summer Schools
- Exploration of young children’s perceptions of their play area in a graveyard
Publications Books
Sinha, P, Richards, S & Stella, M, (forthcoming) Rethinking Contemporary Childhoods through a reconceptualisation of agency Bristol Policy Press
Richards, S. ‘Researching Children and Childhoods’ (forthcoming) London: Bloomsbury
Richards, S., & Coombs, S. (2023) ‘Critical Perspectives on Research with Children Reflexivity, Voice, Interdependent Agency and Ethics Bristol University Press
Vine, T. & Richards, S. (2022) ‘Stories, Storytellers and Storytelling’ Palgrave Macmillan
Vine, T., Clark, J., Richards, S. & Weir, D. (eds) (2018) Ethnographic Encounters London: Palgrave
Richards, S., Clark, J., and Boggis, A., (2015) ‘Ethical Research with Children: Untold Narratives and Taboos’ Palgrave
Clark, J., and Richards, S. (2011) (eds) An introduction to Children, Young People and Social Policy London: Sage
Book chapters
Richards, S. (forthcoming) ‘The Politics of Biological Otherness in Intercountry Adoption’ in Magalhaes, L. (ed) Communicating Otherness London: Palgrave Macmillan
Richards, S. & Coombs, S. (2023) ‘A Bump on the Head in the Churchyard: The Emotional Labour of doing Research with Children’ in Richards, S. & Coombs, S.(eds) Critical Conversations on Researching with Children London: Bristol University Press
Richards, S. & Coombs, S. (2023) ‘Introduction’ in Richards, S. & Coombs, S.(eds) Critical Conversations on Researching with Children London: Bristol University Press
Vine, T & Richards, S. (2022) ‘Introduction to Stories, Storytellers, and Storytelling’ in Vine, T & Richards, S. (eds) Stories, Storytellers, and Storytelling London: Palgrave Macmillan
Richards, S. ‘Chóng ér fÄ“i: Cultural Performances of Belonging’ in Vine, T., Clark, J., Richards, S. & Weir, D. (eds) (2018) Ethnographic Encounters London: Palgrave
Vine, T., Clark, J., Richards, S. & Weir, D (2018) ‘Introduction’ in Vine, T., Clark, J., Richards, S. & Weir, D. (eds) (2018) Ethnographic Encounters London: Palgrave
Vine, T., Clark, J., Richards, S. & Weir, D (2018) ‘Conclusion’ in Vine, T., Clark, J., Richards, S. & Weir, D. (eds) (2018) Ethnographic Encounters London: Palgrave
Richards, S. ‘Historical Policy and Provision’ in Boggis, A. (ed) Disabled Childhoods (2018) London: Palgrave Macmillan
Richards, S. and Clark, J. ‘Research with Disabled Children’ in Boggis, A. (ed) Disabled Childhoods (2018) London: Palgrave Macmillan
Clark, J. and Richards, S. (2017) ‘The cherished conceits of research with children? Does seeking the voice of the agentic child in participatory methods deliver what it promises?’ Sociological Studies of Childhood and Youth, Vol. 22, Emerald Publishing (in association with the ASA)
Richards, S. (2013) ‘An introduction to Children and Social Policy’ in Taylor, J. Bond, E. and Woods, M. (Eds.) Early Childhood Studies an Holistic, Multidisciplinary Introduction (3rd edn) London: Hodder Arnold
Journal articles
Richards, S. (2020) ‘Everybody’s child: An exploration of images of children that shocked the world’ Genealogy
Richards, S. and Clark J. (2018) ‘[Dis]ordered spaces? Managing the competing rights of children in the gendered space of the school toilet’ Journal of Reproductive Systems and Sexual Disorders 1 (5) OAJRSD.MS.ID.000122
Richards, S, (2018) ‘‘I’m more than just adopted’: Narratives of belonging in intercountry adoption’ in "Adoption Experiences and the Tracing and Narration of Family Genealogies" special edition edited by Derek Kirton Genealogy
Richards, S. (2018) book review of Wall, J. (2017) ‘Children’s rights, today’s global challenge’ in Global Studies in Childhood
Richards, S. (2015) ‘HCIA Implementation and the Best Interests of the Child’ Report for Thematic Area 1 of the International Forum on Intercountry Adoption and Global Surrogacy’ AFIN, No 78 Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness Spanish:
Richards_Sarah._Especial_International_Forum_on_Intercountry_Adoption_and_Global_Surrogacy_IV._La_Implementaci%C3%B3n_del_Convenio_de_La_Haya_sobre_Adopci%C3%B3n_Internacional_y_el_Inter%C3%A9s_Superior_de_la_Ni%C3%B1ez Catalan:
Richards_Sarah._Especial_International_Forum_on_Intercountry_Adoption_and_Global_Surrogacy_IV._La_Implementaci%C3%B3_del_Conveni_de_La_Haia_sobre_Adopci%C3%B3_Internacional_i_l_Inter%C3%A8s_Superior_de_la_Inf%C3%A0ncia English:
Richards, S. ‘The Market in Babies Stories of Australian Adoption’ A Review in Australian Historical Studies (2015)
Richards (2014) ‘HCIA Implementation and the Best Interests of the Child’ Report for Thematic Area 1 of the International Forum on Intercountry Adoption and Global Surrogacy (11-13 August 2014) available at;
Richards, S. (2012) ‘What the map cuts up the story cuts across’: narratives of belonging in intercountry adoption’ in ‘Multiculturalism, identity and family placement by Phoenix, A., and Simmonds, J., (eds) in Adoption & Fostering vol 36 (2012) pp 104-112
Conference presentations
Suffolk Libraries Social Community Support Project, Research and Knowledge Exchange Conference 30th June 2022 Â鶹´«Ã½
The Future of Participatory Research with Children Childhood Conference, Research Centre on Childhood Studies 7th December 2021 online conference University of Minho Portugal (invited keynote speaker)
Evaluating Key Concepts in Research with Children Case Researchers Workshop Online September 2021 London School of Economics (invited keynote speaker)
A bump on the Head in the Churchyard: The emotional labour of doing research with children July 2021 Children and Childhoods Conference Â鶹´«Ã½
Mythical creatures and playing amongst the dead Research and Public Engagement conference 13th March 2020 Â鶹´«Ã½ (with Dr Sarah Coombs)
Mythical creatures and playing amongst the dead The 14th International Conference on the Social Context of Death, Dying and Disposal - Centre for the Study of Death and Society: University of Bath - September 4th -7th 2019 (with Dr Sarah Coombs)
‘I’m more than just adopted’: Narratives of belonging in intercountry adoption’ Paper accepted at ICAR 6 The 6th edition of the International Conference on Adoption Research on July 8-12, 2018, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada
‘Developing inclusive practices for Postgraduate programme development’ co-authored abstract for Creating Inclusive postgraduate cultures and communities 2018 UKCGE Annual Conference
Invited to present at Disability Studies and Intersectionality: Blurring the Boundaries Disabled Children’s Research Forum Â鶹´«Ã½ 30 June 2017 (with Jessica Clark)
Talking about the ‘hard stuff’: Australian and British transracial adoptive families negotiating racial difference and issues about belonging co-authored presentation accepted for 5th International Conference on Adoption Research Auckland University January 2016
Stories of Death and Adoption Paper Accepted: The Storytelling Project. 7th Global Meeting. Dubrovnik Croatia. February 2015
Presentation by invitation to Institute of Education, University College London (April 2014) ‘Stories of paper and blood: Narratives of belonging in families with daughters adopted from China’ Presentation by invitation to Institute of Education, University College London (April 2014)
Sarah has previously acted as a consultant for childhood studies routes at the Open University. She has also worked in partnership with Suffolk Libraries to develop a research project to capture the role of libraries in supporting wellbeing. Sarah is also collaborating with Suffolk CRUSE and Suffolk and Norfolk SCITT on a research project exploring bereavement support in schools
Extensive collaboration with Childhood Research Centre at University of Minho including, being a keynote at their conference, a consultant on one of their research projects, an editor for their new Academic Journal Children and Childhoods and consultant and co-convening an international conference in Portugal in 2022
Sits on the Advisory Panel for the Communicating Otherness Book Series published by Palgrave Macmillan
Sarah initiated and co-founded the biennial children and childhood conference programme in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2022 The international nature of this conference ensures that over twenty countries are regularly represented on the delegates list.
Sarah is a member of the Social Policy Association and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.