Clionagh is Associate Dean and Academic Lead for Early Childhood in the Faculty of Education and Social Science at Liverpool Hope University. Her interest is in the political dimension of Early Childhood particularly how research is translated in policy and practice. She received a DfE scholarship to complete her PhD at Queens University Belfast where her thesis was a critical examination of the discourses of neuroscience and evidence in policy and practice. She has over twenty years experience in policy and advocacy working with children, parents, practitioners, schools and communities in Northern Ireland and internationally.