Dr Alexandra Hendry,
Associate Professor, University of Birmingham & University of Oxford
Lab Director
Alex completed her PhD at the IoPPN, King’s College London where she investigated the early development of executive functions and attentional control skills in infants with an increased likelihood of developing autism and/or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), because they have an older sibling already with a diagnosis. This work was part of the ongoing STAARS project (www.staars.org). Both autism and ADHD have been linked to increased difficulties with executive functions but little is understood about the early development of executive functions in these populations, in part because it is so difficult to measure in very young children. A core part of Alex’s research was developing new ways of measuring executive functions in toddlers, who are limited in terms of their ability to understand complex instructions. Her methods include ‘eye-tracking’ tasks which enable us to record exactly where, and for how long, toddlers look at different images on a screen, problem-solving games and touchscreen tasks, and electroencephalography (EEG) as a measure of activity in the brain. In January 2018, Alex joined the Department of Experimental Psychology at the University of Oxford to work on a project investigating executive functions from infancy into early childhood, led by Dr Karla Holmboe. She was awarded an ESRC postdoctoral fellowship to support this work in 2018, and a Scott Family Junior Research Fellowship in Autism in 2019. In 2021 Alex was awarded a 5-year NIHR and Castang Foundation Advanced Fellowship to develop and pilot the START early intervention programme. The aim of the START programme is to support all children to thrive, whether they are neurodivergent or neurotypical. Alex joined the University of Birmingham as an Associate Professor in conjunction with a 125th Anniversary Fellowship in 2025.
Dr Ailbhe McKinney
Postdoctoral Researcher
Ailbhe is a postdoctoral researcher with a background in developmental psychology. Her work explores the links between attention, self-regulation and learning outcomes in young children, with a particular interest in neurodiverse populations.
Dr Mary Agyapong
Postdoctoral Researcher
Mary is a postdoctoral researcher interested in neuro-cognition and language learning in the development of autism and ADHD. She holds a PhD in Psychology from King’s College London. Within the UPLIFT lab, Mary is conducting quantitative data analysis of the development of executive functions in infants and toddlers.
Gabi Gribbin
Research Assistant
Gabi supports the lab’s studies from design through to data collection and analysis. She coordinates participant recruitment and helps run the lab’s testing sessions, ensuring families have a positive experience taking part in our research.
Vicky Hulks
PhD Student
Vicky is a DPhil candidate at the University of Oxford researching how we can use process evaluation when measuring the impact of complex early years interventions. By considering a range of contextual factors within the evaluation process, an intervention can better demonstrate if it works, who it works for, how, and why. Vicky’s background is in speech and language therapy and has specialised in supporting children’s development in the early years- working with parents and practitioners and within wider community teams.
Maryna Nosyk
PhD Student
Maryna is a DPhil candidate at the University of Oxford. She is interested in early development and how we can promote and support it in low-and-middle- income countries, like Ukraine where she is from. Before joining the Department of Experimental Psychology at the University of Oxford, Maryna completed her MRes at the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, UCL. She also has experience in working with children and young adults with autism and ADHD.
Mollie Roddan
PhD Student
Mollie is a DPhil candidate at the University of Oxford. Mollie’s research aims to develop and apply behavioural insights to improve the accessibility, inclusivity, and acceptability of early years support for families with a connection to neurodivergence. This mixed-methods research is built on principles of co-production and lived experience expertise, in collaboration with community partners
Previous team members
- Dr Victoria Castle
- Dr Martina Smith
- Devangi Maheshwari
- Caitlin Croke
- Bella Smalley
- Naveena Luthra
- Jane Ihezie