Jen McGahan

Dr Jen McGahan serves as a Senior Lecturer in the School of Psychology at Manchester Metropolitan University, where she coordinates the 'Wellbeing in Schools' programme and leads multiple externally-funded initiatives focused on child mental health and educational outcomes across Greater Manchester.

She earned her PhD from the University of Manchester in 2013.

Her research specializes in trauma-informed educational approaches, childhood developmental challenges, and evidence-based wellbeing interventions. She develops school programmes targeting emotional health, resilience building, and transitions to further/higher education, with particular emphasis on vulnerable populations including trauma-affected pupils and girls in literacy development programmes. Her work bridges clinical psychology with practical educational implementation through partnerships with schools and community organizations.

Recent publications demonstrate consistent focus on evaluating mental health and literacy interventions in educational settings, with increasing attention to programme scalability and cross-sector collaboration between academic institutions, schools, and community foundations.

Dr McGahan actively supervises PhD research on trauma-informed education, youth mental health resilience, university students' mental health perceptions, and substance use in autistic adults. Her projects receive funding from the National Literacy Trust, Salford Foundation, and National Collaborative Outreach Programme.

She directs the 'Wellbeing in Schools' initiative where undergraduate and postgraduate psychology students deliver evidence-based interventions in local schools, creating a reciprocal training and service delivery model.