Alex Kaley joined the University of East Anglia in 2024 as Lecturer in Sociology. She has previously held positions at the University of Essex and Lancaster University. 

Alex has an interdisciplinary background in sociology and public health. Her research sits at the intersections of medical sociology and disability studies. Specifically, she uses sociological approaches to explore the health and social inequalities experienced by disabled people - as well as innovations in health and social care to address these inequalities. Recent work is examining the intersections of disability and gender, and reproductive health and rights. In exploring these issues Alex has developed expertise in the use of creative and participatory methodologies to elicit the views and experiences of people who may be considered marginalised or whose narratives often go unheard. Alex has an established track record for generating external research income from charitable and major grant funders (e.g., ESRC, NIHR) for research projects on learning disability, dementia and young people’s mental health, in the UK and international contexts. She has published academic output at international levels of recognition in the fields of sociology, disability studies and public health.

She is Principle Investigator for an NIHR funded project “Let’s talk about sex, periods and having babies” (2025-2026) which is exploring reproductive injustice in the lives of people with learning disabilities.

Other current research includes an NIHR funded project “Show me where and how you belong: belonging and difference for people with learning disabilities” (2024-2026) which is using an intersectional approach to health equity, focusing on belonging as an important but understudied social determinant of health.

Alex’s research interests include:

• Medical sociology
• Disability studies
• Health and social inequalities
• Reproductive justice
• Qualitative and participatory methodologies

Alex is Lecturer is Sociology and teaches across the Sociology programme. Modules include:

• Researching social life
• Social problems and solutions
• Social policy and social Justice.