Dr Kate Farmer

Academic and Professional Tutor, DEdPsy & Senior Educational Psychologist, Newham BSc, PGCE, MSc, DEdPsy, C.Psychol, HCPC Reg Room: 212 Email: kate.farmer.17@ucl.ac.uk

Kate completed a psychology degree and PGCE at the University of Southampton in 2000 and then worked as an early years teacher. She returned to Southampton in 2002 to undertake professional training in educational psychology. Her research explored children’s transition from hospital school to mainstream school.

Kate spent three years working as an educational psychologist in Essex. She joined Thurrock in 2006 as a senior educational psychologist with an early years specialism. In this role, Kate supervised early years outreach providers and a Portage team delivering an early intervention service for children aged 0-5 years and their families. Kate led and contributed to a range of systemic work during her time in Thurrock, including the redesign of the local authority’s early years SEND services and the development of person-centred approaches. Kate joined the EPS management team in the London borough of Newham in 2023.

Kate began the CPD Doctorate in Educational Psychology at UCL in 2018 and completed in 2022. Her research explored approaches to understanding the views of children with complex learning and communication needs for person-centred planning. Kate joined the UCL tutor team in January 2023 as an Academic and Professional Tutor on the DEdPsy course.

Kate’s professional and research interests include early years, person-centred approaches, multi-agency working, dynamic assessment and mediated learning, sensory processing differences, autism, and profound and multiple learning difficulties. Kate is on the editorial board of Educational and Child Psychology and promotes the value of EP involvement in research activities to create an evidence base for EP practice and to further the impact of educational psychology.