Catherine Gallop’s higher education journey has been unusual. From an early age she knew she wanted to help those experiencing psychological distress. She was the first female in her family to go to university, where she developed a strong passion for clinical psychology and equity, diversity and inclusion. Subsequently she worked as an Assistant Psychologist with young people with neurodiversity and was accepted on the Doctorate in Clinical Psychology, University of Oxford.
From the outset of her career as a qualified Clinical Psychologist, she has worked in a higher education environment, initially as a research therapist developing psychological interventions and resources for children and young people. Since 2007, she has been a dedicated and passionate clinical academic/trainer and education leader within CEDAR (Clinical Education Development and Research), the applied psychological practice centre of excellence within psychology at the University of Exeter.
Her context is therefore not traditional academia, but instead involves facilitating the application of clinical and applied psychological theory into practice and growing and developing the psychological workforce in the NHS. She manages to combine an unwavering committed to supporting her own students and colleagues with many challenging external roles and responsibilities. She leads clinical training initiatives with Health Education England and professional bodies which oversee national governance and accreditation.
Through her work, she has become one of the most recognised local and national contemporary educators and transformative leaders in her field and has evidenced exceptional, innovative and world class reach, value and impact in relation to student outcomes, staff development, and patient experience and outcomes.
At all times, in line with her professional code of conduct, she upholds high standards of professionalism, promotes ethical behaviour, and evidences values of respect, competence, responsibility and integrity. She feels deeply privileged that throughout her career she has been given the opportunities to combine her passion of alleviating distress in others with working in higher education to build knowledge and competency in students who can make a real impact on the global challenge of mental health. She is grateful to have worked alongside dedicated and capable colleagues driving forward this important area of work.