Dr Melissa Hawkins

Assistant Professor

School: Newcastle Business School

Melissa is an academic at Northumbria University's Business School, with research interests shaped by over twenty years of experience in education, including time spent as a teacher practitioner in schools. Her work centres on developing complexity-informed policy and practice through utilising action-oriented research methods. Melissa adopts an engaged scholarship approach to her role, actively linking research and knowledge exchange with teaching and learning activities.

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Key Publications

Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
Regional Areas of Research Interest: Challenges, opportunities and next steps, Campbell, C., Davies, R., Hawkins, M., French, M., Pell, C. 9 Mar 2026
Charting a route back to relevance? Supporting 21st century public service practitioners through action-oriented, complexity-informed, and engaged pedagogy, Hawkins, M., French, M., Diamond, J., Wilson, R., Hesselgreaves, H. Jul 2025, In: Teaching Public Administration
Conclusion: Futures in Relational Public Management Approaches, Wilson, R., Hesselgreaves, H., French, M., Hawkins, M., Jamieson, D., King, M., Kimmitt, J. 31 Jul 2025, Futures in Public Management, Leeds, United Kingdom, Emerald
Futures in Public Management: The Emerging Relational Approach to Public Services, Wilson, R., Hesselgreaves, H., French, M., Hawkins, M., Jamieson, D., King, M., Kimmitt, J. 11 Aug 2025
Introduction: Futures in Public Management: Is There an Emerging Relational Approach to Public Services?, Wilson, R., Hesselgreaves, H., French, M., Hawkins, M., Jamieson, D., King, M., Kimmitt, J. 31 Jul 2025, Futures in Public Management, Leeds, United Kingdom, Emerald
Areas of Research Interest: a Practical Guide, French, M., Hawkins, M. 10 Dec 2024
Why teacher appraisals need SMARTER targets, James, C., Hawkins, M. 3 Jan 2024
Harnessing Complexity for better outcomes in Public and Non-profit Services, French, M., Hesselgreaves, H., Wilson, R., Hawkins, M., Lowe, T. 23 Feb 2023
New development: Learning communities—an approach to dismantling barriers to collective improvement, Wilson, L., Hawkins, M., French, M., Lowe, T., Hesselgreaves, H. 19 May 2023, In: Public Money and Management
Reflective practice at 40: why it’s still a vital leadership tool, James, C., Hawkins, M., Gilbride, N., Connolly, M. 20 Sep 2023

Professional Activity

Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
Other: Seedcorn Funding: Building regional academic-policy ecosystems through ‘Areas of Research & Teaching Interest’ (ARTIs). 2026
Organising a conference, workshop, ...: Complexity and the Social World 2025
Invited talk: Social Enterprise Day 2025 2025
Editorial work: Evidence and Policy (Journal) 2025
Organising a conference, workshop, ...: Complexity and Systems Thinking Executive Leadership CPD course 2024
Other: Funded Project: Using Areas Of Research Interest To Sustain Research-Policy-Practice Relationships For Regional Policy Engagement 2024
Other: Capabilities in Academic Policy Engagement (CAPE) Fellowship 2023
Organising a conference, workshop, ...: Towards Relational Public Services Annual Conference 2023
Other: Impact Case Study: Transforming public services through new commissioning and management priorities 2021
Other: Externally Funded Research Project: Funding and Commissioning in Complexity 2018

PGR Supervision

Julie Aitken Exploring how creative action orientated approaches affect engagement and impact within Areas of Research Interest. Start Date: 01/10/2025
Julie Wooton Vulnerability Reimagined: Crisis, Complexity and the Normalisation of Change in a Local Health and Care System: A Theory-Driven Inquiry into Transformation in Oldham During the COVID-19 Response Start Date: 08/11/2024 End Date: 17/10/2025