About
Dr. Lavinia Mitton is a Senior Lecturer in Social Policy and Programme Director of the University of Kent’s Policy Officer Higher Apprenticeship. Her work bridges academic learning with practical policy development, focusing on training professionals to influence government policy through evidence synthesis and stakeholder engagement. She holds a PhD from the London School of Economics, an MSc in The Social History of Medicine from Wolfson College, Oxford, and a BA in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics from Somerville College, Oxford.
Research Interests
Dr. Mitton specializes in UK social inequalities, particularly ethnicity and poverty. She analyzes large-scale datasets like the Family Resources Survey to study policy impacts, with a focus on means-testing consequences and marginalized group vulnerabilities. Her recent work explores refugee homelessness and curriculum diversification in social policy education.
Teaching
In addition to leading the Higher Apprenticeship program, she teaches UK welfare state modules and social inequality topics in the BA Social Policy and Social Change program. She co-edits the major textbook Social Policy (Oxford University Press).
Professional Contributions
Her roles include:
- Member of the Social Policy Association
- Co-editor of Social Policy textbook
- Contributor to ESRC Black Africans in the UK project
- Lead on University of Kent Student Success (EDI) Project
Key Projects
Her current projects emphasize:
- Policy apprenticeship program development
- Equity in higher education attainment
- Analysis of migrant integration and public policy
