I’m a public-facing academic linguist and author based in Manchester, UK, fascinated by the ways our voices shape who we are. As Professor of Sociolinguistics at Manchester Metropolitan University, I explore the powerful relationship between spoken language and identity, while also supporting research across the faculty as Research Environment Lead for English Language and Literature.

Beyond academia, I work closely with the media and schools to share insights about language with wider audiences, and I was a member of the recent Commission on the Future of Oracy Education in England. My book You’re All Talk: Why We Are What We Speak (Scribe, 2023), takes readers inside the stories our voices tell. The paperback edition came out in April 2025.

From 2019 to 2023 I led Manchester Voices, a major project exploring the accents, dialects, and identities of people across Greater Manchester. Funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, the project has uncovered the rich diversity of the region’s voices and how they connect to local identity. A book about the project came out in August 2026 (Cambridge University Press), and is written to appeal to both an academic and non-academic audience.

Alongside this, I co-run the Accentism Project with Dr Amanda Cole (University of Cambridge), where we highlight stories of language-based discrimination, prejudice, and stereotyping. We also provide training, workshops and consultancy for organisations seeking to better understand accent bias and its impact in the workplace, education and public life. Drawing on the latest sociolinguistic research, our work helps individuals and organisations recognise hidden assumptions about the way people speak and develop more inclusive practices

Before these projects, much of my work focused on youth language in alternative education settings. Together with Dr Susan Dray, I led the UrBEn-ID project (2014–2016, funded by The Leverhulme Trust), which gave a voice to young people in Pupil Referral Units and explored how language helps them navigate identity.