Professor Kate Jolly MBChB, MSc, PhD, FFPH

Professor Kate Jolly

Department of Applied Health Sciences
Professor of Public Health and Primary Care

Contact details

Telephone
+44 (0)121 414 7552
Telephone (2)
PA: Anne Walker +44 (0)121 414 7578
Email
c.b.jolly@bham.ac.uk
Address
Murray Learning Centre
University 麻豆精选
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT

Kate Jolly is a Professor of Public Health and Primary Care.

Her main research interests are on the prevention and management of important non-communicable diseases, such as cardiovascular and respiratory conditions; behaviour change to reduce obesity and increase physical activity and maternal and child health.

Qualifications

  • Fellow of the Faculty of Public Health 2018
  • PhD in Public Health 2008
  • Membership of the Faculty of Public Health 1998
  • MSc in Public Health Medicine 1992
  • Member of the Royal College of General Practitioners 1990
  • MBChB 1986

Biography

Kate Jolly qualified in medicine from Bristol University in 1986. She firstly trained in general practice, then in public health medicine. Her academic training took place at the Universities of Southampton and Birmingham. Kate completed her training in public health in 1999 and became a senior lecturer in 2004. In 2011 she took on the role of clinical lead for public health in the School of Health and Population Sciences and was promoted to chair in 2012. 

Teaching

Teaching Programmes

  • MBChB
  • BMedSci
  • Public Health MPH/PGDip/PGCert

Postgraduate supervision

Kate is interested in supervising doctoral research students in the following areas:

  • Behavioural change programmes for rehabilitation and self-management of long-term conditions, and primary prevention of disease in the whole population and minority ethnic groups
  • Evaluation of lay or peer support or home-based interventions.
  • Interventions to support breastfeeding. 

Research

Maternal and child health

Work in this field has involved the use of high quality study designs to evaluate service innovations in maternity and child health services. Completed studies include:

  • A randomised controlled trial (RCT) of a pregnancy outreach worker service to see whether it improves antenatal care engagement, psychological health and infant outcomes of multi-ethnic women with social risk.
  • An RCT of the effectiveness of physical activity for reducing postnatal depression.
  •  An RCT trial of preventing obesity in pregnancy (POPS).
  • An RCT of a breastfeeding peer support service on breastfeeding initiation and continuation rates (HoBBIT).
  • Systematic reviews on the effects of peer support on breastfeeding peer support and the effectiveness and safety of interventions to limit weight gain in overweight and obese pregnant women.

Population-based behaviour change

Completed trials include:

  • Self-management for COPD in primary care: RCT of telephone coaching for people with mildly symptomatic COPD.
  • Rehabilitation Enablement in Chronic Heart Failure. (Led by Professors Rod Taylor and Hayes Dalal, University of Exeter and Royal Cornwall Hospital - NIHR Programme Grant)
  • RCT evaluating the effectiveness of a range of commercial and NHS provided weight management

Other activities

  • Honorary clinical contract held with Public Health England.

Publications

Recent publications

Article

Kudrna, L, Yates, J, Alidu, L, Hemming, K, Quinn, L, Schmidtke, KA, Jones, J, Al-Khudairy, L, Jolly, K, Bird, P, Campbell, N, Bharatan, I, Latuszynska, A, Currie, G & Lilford, R 2025, '', International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, vol. 22, no. 3, 398.

Price, J, Rushton, A, Ives, N, Jolly, K, Parmar, P & Greaves, C 2025, '', Pilot and Feasibility Studies, vol. 11, no. 1, 26.

Palmer, JC, Davies, AL, Spiga, F, Heitmann, B, Russell, J, Summerbell, CD, Higgins, JPT & Inequity in Obesity Prevention Trialists Collaborative Group 2025, '', EClinicalMedicine, vol. 81, 81.

Hurley, KL, Jolly, K, Brown, H, Scott, S, Akhter, Z, Dyer, E, Nguyen, G, Lake, AA, M枚ller-Christensen, C, Flint, N, Baker, A, Brennan-Tovey, K, Dickie, S, Gibson, E, Jackson, C, Loopstra, R, Nagra, H, Rankin, J, Williams, D, Wiseman, A & Heslehurst, N 2025, '', PLOS One, vol. 20, no. 5, pp. e0321638.

Watkins, R, Jones, L, Clare, K, Coulman, K, Greaves, C, Jolly, K, Shuttlewood, E & Parretti, H 2025, '', Clinical Obesity.

PERFORM research team, Steele, L, Krauth, SJ, Ahmed, S, Dibben, GO, McIntosh, E, Hanlon, P, Lewsey, J, Nicholl, BI, McAllister, DA, Smith, SM, Evans, R, Ahmed, Z, Dean, S, Greaves, C, Barber, S, Doherty, P, Gardiner, N, Ibbotson, T, Jolly, K, Ormandy, P, Simpson, SA, Taylor, RS, Singh, SJ, Mair, FS & Jani, BD 2025, '', BMC Medicine, vol. 23, no. 1, 1.

Jiraporncharoen, W, Buawangpong, N, Angkurawaranon, C, Jolly, K, Thomas, GN, Phrommintikul, A, Krittayaphong, R, Nathisuwan, S, Lip, G, Lane, D, Mathers, J & TREATS-AF consortium 2025, '', British Medical Journal Open.

Daley, AJ, Griffin, RA, Sanders, JP, Gokal, K, Ives, N, Skrybant, M, Parretti, H, Edwardson, CL, Biddle, SJH, Jolly, K, Greaves, C, Greenfield, SM, Maddison, R, Esliger, DW, Sherar, LB, Frew, E, Mutrie, N, Maylor, B, Yates, T, Tearne, S & Moakes, CA 2025, '', International Journal of Behavioral Medicine.

Damery, S, Jones, J, Harrison, A, Hinde, S & Jolly, K 2025, '', PLOS ONE, vol. 20, no. 3, e0319619.

Joyce, J, Haizadeh , A, Begh, R, Jolly, K, Jebb, S & Aveyard, P 2025, '', Clinical Obesity.

Krauth, SJ, Steell, L, Ahmed, S, McIntosh, E, Dibben, GO, Hanlon, P, Lewsey, J, Nicholl, BI, McAllister, DA, Smith, SM, Evans, R, Ahmed, Z, Dean, S, Greaves, C, Barber, S, Doherty, P, Gardiner, N, Ibbotson, T, Jolly, K, Ormandy, P, Simpson, SA, Taylor, RS, Singh, SJ, Mair, FS & Jani, BD 2024, '', EClinicalMedicine, vol. 74, 102703.

D'Elia, A, Jordan, RE, Cheng, KK, Chi, C, Correia de Sousa, J, Dickens, AP, Enocson, A, Farley, A, Gale, N, Jolly, K, Jowett, S, Maglakelidze , M, Maghlakelidze, T, Martins, SM, Pan, Z, Sitch, A, Stavrikj, K, Turner, A, Williams, S & Adab, P 2024, '', Global Health Research.

Dickens, AP, Gale, N, Adab, P, Cheng, KK, Chi, C, Correia de Sousa, J, Enocson, A, Farley, A, Jolly, K, Jowett, S, Maglakelidze , M, Maglakelidze, T, Martins, S, Pan, Z, Sitch, A, Stavrikj, K, Turner, A, Williams, S & Jordan, RE 2024, '', Global Health Research, pp. 1-26.

Review article

Clarke, J, Jolly, K, Chandan, J & Hanley, S 2025, '', Maternal and Child Nutrition.

Damery, S, Sekoni, AO, Retzer, A, Okafor, I, Manga-Atangana, B, Posaner, R, Gale, N & Jolly, K 2025, '', BMJ open, vol. 15, no. 1, e090005.

Expertise

Obesity

Weight Management