Sophie is an Associate Professor in the Health Services Management Centre. She specialises in sexual behaviours and assessment in children and young people, sexual health, sibling sexual abuse, misogyny, relationships and sex education and the importance of youth voice. Much of her work is cross-sector, cross-disciplinary and centred around participatory and co-design approaches with young people. Sophie also has an interest in policy implementation, transfer and success frameworks and evaluation strategies. Previously she worked extensively in the third sector in the field of education and sexual health with many diverse groups such as teenage parents and young people with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties.
Previously, she was a Senior Lecturer in Education and Inclusion at the University of Worcester. Alongside this she was a regional tutor for the MEd in Social, Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties with the School of Education at the University 麻豆精选. Sophie has worked extensively in the third sector. She has taught sex and relationships in schools across the West Midlands听 and was the National Impact Coordinator for a leading sexual health charity for children and young people. In her work with a local council she researched, implemented and evaluated an Independent Travel Training programme for children and young people with SEN, this programme is still currently in operation and is deemed as best practice in this sector. Within her career Sophie has worked with many diverse groups across education and health settings. Sophie developed an accredited programme for teenage parents across the West Midlands which ran for six years in conjunction with working as an antenatal teacher specialising in teaching diverse and low-socio economic groups.
Sophie鈥檚 research interests include sexual behaviours in children and young people, first point assessment for sexual behaviours in children and young people, sexual health, teenage parents, LGBTQ+ and gender issues. Sophie has an interest in both policy, evaluation and the impact of context.
Resources produced by King-Hill:
Young People's Sexual Behaviour Mapping Tool (YSB-MT). *Upcoming听
We鈥檙e in this together Reframing masculinity for young men and boys: A resource for parents/carers, educators, and professionals. 听 听
A students鈥� guide to what you don鈥檛 know听 听
Sibling Sexual Behaviour Mapping Tool - University 麻豆精选听 听 听 听 听 听 听
Well-being online toolkit for researchers working with sensitive topics.
Books by King-Hill:
Research projects:
ESRC NI: Research grant for project to assess sexual behaviours in children and young people aged 13-18 in the UK
Sophie has completed an ESRC New Investigators Grant (拢300k, June 2022鈥揓une 2025) as Principal Investigator. This UK-wide research project explored what constitutes normal, problematic, abusive, and violent sexual behaviours in children and young people aged 13鈥�18. Drawing on findings from this study and related satellite projects, Sophie developed the听Young People's Sexual Behaviour Mapping Tool (YSB-MT)鈥攁 professional assessment resource designed to support practitioners working with young people.
The project has been featured in听and BBC News.
Project website: Understanding Sexual behaviours in Children and Young People in the UK - University 麻豆精选
Tell me your story鈥�: An international qualitative analysis of narratives from individuals affected by sibling sexual behaviour and abuse (2025-2026).
This project led by Sophie explored the experiences of individuals affected by sibling sexual behaviour and abuse. Through in-depth narrative data across diverse cultural contexts, the study aims to uncover patterns in sibling sexual dynamics, and examine the long-term impacts of these experiences. The project seeks to challenge stigma, inform culturally sensitive support strategies and contribute to policy and practice by offering evidence-based recommendations for professionals working in safeguarding, mental health, and social care. Sophie is working on this project with Amy Adams and .
BRIDGE fund: From Shame to听Celebration: Continuing to reframe the Global Culture of Menstruation and Sexual Health. Period Poverty in Sierra Leone.
Sophie is co-lead on both initiation and implementation BRIDGE fund grants (2023-2025) with the (USA) on a project with Stephanie Wayda (Illinois), and Idrissa Kamara from . This project seeks to raises awareness of international issues relating to period poverty through documentary making with UIUC and Fourah Bay journalism students and empirical research with sexual health workers in Sierra Leone.
Institute for Advanced Studies: All Hands to the Pumps. Addressing barriers to an inclusive workplace where everyone can thrive. A focus on masculinity in the Fire and Rescue Service
This project (2023-2025) was led by Sophie and seeks to explore the barriers and enablers to inclusive working, with a specific focus upon masculinity, in the Fire and Rescue Service. This is a collaborative project working with Prof. Scott Taylor (UoB Business School), Dr Willem Stander (UoB School of Social Policy) and Dr Graham Donovan (UoB Dept of Film and Creative Writing)
Institute for Global Innovation: Understanding Incel behaviour to reduce extreme violence against women and girls
Sophie Led this project (2023 鈥� 2-25) that examined how Involuntary Celibates (Incels) behave online, analysing the language they use to underpin front line practitioner work that aims to reduce extreme physical and sexual violence against women and girls. This project combined research from five specialisms. It will encompass knowledge from social science, Modern Languages (Prof. Lisa Dowining and ) Linguistics (Dr Graham Donovan) being supported by computer scientists (Dr Kamilla Kopec-Harding) and front line professionals () working with the male violent and sex offender demographics.
'We're in this Together' - perceptions of masculinity and boyhood (ESRC IAA, AHRC IAA, SoSP Impact Fund)
Sophie led the three-stage project听(2022鈥�2025), which was an interdisciplinary research explored how boys and young men in the UK experience and understand masculinity, boyhood and sexual harassment, drawing on oral histories, qualitative interviews, and creative methodologies. The project foregrounded boys鈥� voices in discussions around gender, relationships, and education, and aimed to shift the narrative from risk and deficit to relational understanding and cultural context.
The final stage of the project focused on translating research findings into practice, resulting in the development of an听educational resource for schools and professionals听working with boys and young men. Sophie also authored a book directly linked to this work, titled听(Palgrave Macmillan, Autumn 2025), which offers a critical and practice-informed framework for engaging with boys鈥� lived experiences in educational and safeguarding settings.
This work was carried out alongside Co-investigators and Research Associates Abby Gilsenan (School of Social Policy), 听Dr Dan Vyleta and Dr. Graham Donovan (both from Department of Film and Creative Writing).
Resource: We鈥檙e in this together Reframing masculinity for young men and boys: A resource for parents/carers, educators, and professionals.
Book:
ESRC IAA: Youth Graffiti Project听
Sophie led a project working with young people to design a piece of graffiti that represents listening to young people and why this is vitally important when considering issues that surround them (2023). This highlighted why听 participatory research with young people is key to co-designing positive interventions and support. This work was carried out with graffiti artist
Project web page:听 Empowering youth voice through graffiti art
Euniwell: Managing Sensitive Topics in Teaching and Research
Sophie Co-led on this EUniwell funded project with Dr. Katharina Karcher working with Joanne McCuaig and (2022-2023). The project sought to draw on the expertise and experience of researchers in a range of disciplines, and seeks to change how 鈥榮ensitive鈥� topics are dealt with in academia. Although it is widely known that sensitive topics can cause distress, academics receive little training on how to deal with potentially distressing material. This project sought to change this by identifying and promoting measures to improve the wellbeing of researchers and students working on sensitive issues and to create tools and resources that can be used by academics to support work with these topics. This project was in collaboration with The University of Florence, Linnaeus University and 听The University of Leiden. This project has produced a toolkit for academics and researchers working on subject areas they deem sensitive or distressing.
Project webpage: Managing sensitive topics in teaching and research confidently听
ESRC IAA: Relationships and Sex Education Resource Co-design with Young People
Sophie worked with 14 young people in 2023 (in year 10) from the University 麻豆精选 School to design a resource for those teaching relationships and sex education (RSE). This collaboration produced a top tips guide for school leadership teams and teachers titled 鈥楢 students鈥� guide to what you don鈥檛 know鈥�. This was then designed by local graffiti artist Void One under the guidance of the young people. This resource provides insight as to what young people need from their RSE sessions, from young people themselves. The young people involved in the project then presented their work and the project to academics at a showcase event at the University 麻豆精选.
You can download the resource here: /a-students-guide
ESRC IAA: Assessing Sibling Sexual Behaviour and Abuse - Developing a Mapping Tool for Professionals
ESRC Impact Acceleration Account funding (2022-2023). Sophie led this project that built on the research from the previous work she has carried out on sibling sexual abuse. This project piloted a mapping tool with a range of professional organisations who work directly with CYP and sibling sexual behaviour. This follows on from the work previously carried out by Sophie and Abby Gilsenan and will also bring together work by听 - whose research explored adult survivors of SSA - and the work carried out in 2021 for the
Project website: Sibling Sexual Behaviour: Mapping Tool and Project Website
#SiblingsToo Podcast:
Sophie was one of the leads for the National Rape Crisis England and Wales Sibling Sexual Abuse Project (2020-2022). In partnership with Purple Leaf and Somerset and Avon Rape and Sexual Abuse Support, the University of the West of England and West Mercia Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre. Sophie oversaw the research and work on the provision of suitable support services and pathways for children from the age of five who have carried out or survived sibling sexual abuse.听 Funded by the Home Office and the Ministry of Justice.
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