Lynette is an Associate Professor with an established track record of senior academic leadership across departmental, faculty, and institutional levels. She has held key roles including Head of Subject, Deputy Head of Department, Director of Access and Participation, and Interim Dean of Apprentices. Her leadership expertise is recognised through the award of Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (PFHEA) in 2023.

As Interim Dean of Apprentices (November 2023 – January 2025), Lynette was a member of the University’s senior executive leadership team with strategic responsibility for a complex apprenticeship portfolio of 31 programmes spanning all four faculties. This portfolio operates within a highly regulated environment, subject to oversight by the Department for Education (DfE) and the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA). During her tenure, the portfolio underwent a full Ofsted inspection, achieving a rating of Good. Lynette played a pivotal role in leading the institutional response, including the development and implementation of a comprehensive Post-Inspection Action Plan, which strengthened regulatory compliance and enhanced the student experience across apprenticeship provision.

Lynette has sustained national and international leadership impact through her external roles. She is an appointed member of the Advance HE Strategic Advisory Group for Excellence in Education, where she collaborates with senior sector leaders to shape national priorities and strategic direction. She also contributes to the Council of Deans of Health Strategic Policy Group for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, advising on policy and practice influencing healthcare education across the UK. She has recently been appointed to the senior leadership team for Nurse Academics UK, contributing to national discussions and strategic developments relating to the academic nursing workforce.

Her research on breastfeeding education and workforce development has achieved significant national and international recognition. A key indicator of esteem is the inclusion of her work within the UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative training programme, one of the most influential global education frameworks in this field and referenced in national policy, including the NHS Plan. Her work is used widely across the NHS and is gaining increasing international recognition, including at University College Dublin (UCD). Lynette has established a formal international partnership with The University of Hong Kong, further extending the global reach of her work. Her current research focuses on the development of a digital continuing professional development (CPD) package, with an international pilot underway. In recognition of the impact of this work, Lynette was shortlisted as a finalist in the prestigious Nursing Times Awards in 2025. Through externally funded research and high-quality peer-reviewed publications, she has demonstrated sustained impact on policy and practice across the breastfeeding workforce and is regularly invited to present her work at national and international conferences.

A further strand of her research focuses on educational inequality, particularly in relation to care-experienced students. As Principal Investigator on funded research supported by the Welland Trust, Lynette works collaboratively with regional stakeholders, including the Regional Care Leaver Steering Group, and with Become, the national charity for care leavers, to inform and advance policy and practice in this area. This work is also gaining international recognition, with Lynette invited to present her research to the BSA in Italy in June 2026.

Lynette’s academic work is grounded in her professional background in nursing and health visiting, and she maintains current registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).