Faculty Members

Professor Cathy Hill is a Professor of Child Health in the University of Southampton and has published over 75 peer reviewed journal articles on children’s sleep.  Cathy established Southampton Sleep Training, in 2012. She has received over £2.5 million in research funding to study children’s sleep disorders.   As Consultant in Paediatric Sleep Medicine in Southampton Children’s hospital she oversees a busy quaternary clinical service. She is a certified European Somnologist and research lead for the British Paediatric Sleep Society
Dr Rachel Langley is a clinical psychologist with the Southampton Children’s Sleep Disorders Service. Her background is in child and adolescent mental health, and she's worked in the children’s sleep disorder service for 13 years. Her clinical doctorate focused on sleep in children with ADHD. Her main interests are anxiety around sleep and working with children with complex and chronic medical problems. She delivers training as part of the Southampton Sleep Training courses and within the University of Southampton clinical psychology doctoral training course.
Dr Ness Hewertson is a Consultant in Paediatric Sleep Medicine at Southampton Children’s Hospital. She is a certified European Sonologist and has completed a postgraduate diploma in sleep medicine with distinction at Oxford University. She is a member of the British Paediatric Sleep Society Committee, and she has worked collaboratively with other paediatric sleep medicine consultants to create an RCPCH accredited specialist interest training module in paediatric sleep medicine. She regularly delivers teaching on the Southampton Sleep Training course and delivers training to postgraduate paediatric trainees.
Dr Andrea Whitney is a paediatric consultant neurologist with extensive teaching experience including international delivery of British Paediatric Neurology Association Epilepsy training courses in the UK and internationally.
Dr Sarah Matthews is a clinical psychologist within the Southampton Children’s Sleep disorders service. Her background is in paediatric psychology and she's worked in the children’s sleep disorder service for over 10 years. Her main interests are anxiety around sleep and working with children with functional symptoms. She delivers training as part of the Southampton Sleep Training courses.
​Joanne McCubbin is a Clinical Nurse Specialist in Paediatric Sleep Medicine and nurse lead for children with rare disorders of hypersomnolence. Jo offers educational support to children, young people, their parents and family members, to help them learn to manage their condition. She also works with their schools to provide education around the condition and put in place an education and healthcare plan to make sure the child or young person has the best environment and conditions to help them to learn and achieve.
Karen Curtain is a Specialist Paediatric Sleep Practitioner. Background in special needs education and behaviour management Karen is experienced in delivering training to parents and professionals.
Karen Farrance is a Senior Specialist Paediatric Sleep Practitioner and Southampton Sleep Training Coordinator. Karen’s background is in Health Visiting, supporting families with behaviour management and child development. She has experience in delivering parenting courses, workshops and supporting families with individualised sleep management programmes. Karen also delivers teaching on the Southampton Sleep Training Course. 
​Ani Marshall joined the team as a Clinical Nurse Specialist in 2019. She has spent 10 years working in Paediatric Intensive Care before transitioning to the community as a public health nurse for 5-19 year olds. Her role within the sleep team is to support families with neurological sleep disorders and is the lead for children with sleep related rhythmic movement disorder.  She runs a monthly nurse led clinic, assessing, and supporting children with medical sleep disorders such as parasomnias, movement related disorders and monthly sleep related rhythmic movement disorder clinics. 
Amy Ainsworth is a Paediatric Sleep Practitioner at University Hospital Southampton. 

Quest Speakers

Samuele Cortese, is Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of Southampton and Honorary Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatry for Solent NHS Trust. Prof. Cortese’s main research interest are around neurodevelopmental disorders, with a focus on ADHD.. He has published more than 300 peer-review papers, including first author papers in prestigious journals such as the New England Journal of Medicine and The Lancet Psychiatry.
He has secured external funding as main or co-applicant for more than £ 10 M. In 2022, he ranked  #1 worldwide in terms of expertise on Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) according to Expertscape.
Georgie Agar is a Lecturer at Aston University. Georgie's work combines actigraphy, behavioural assessments and fine-grained observational techniques to understand sleep difficulties in individuals with intellectual disability, rare genetic syndromes, and autism.
Professor Carmen Schroder is a Clinical Psychiatrist in the area of children and young people at the University Hospital Strasbourg, France.
Dr Caroline Richards is an associate professor in Psychology at Birmingham University.  She completed her BSc in Psychology at the University of Birmingham in 2007 and completed her PhD in 2012, supervised by Professor Chris Oliver. Her PhD was in self-injurious behaviour in children and adults with autism spectrum disorder and combined large epidemiological surveys of risk markers, with single case experimental designs using fine grained behavioural observations. In 2010, alongside the completion of her PhD, Dr Richards undertook training as a Clinical Psychologist at the University of Birmingham. She completed this training in 2015, which included specialist placements conducting assessments of children ‘at risk’ of autism and a seminal meta-analytic study of autism characteristics in rare genetic syndromes.
Dr Rabya Mughal is a postdoctoral researcher at University of Cambridge in Psychiatry with substantial experience working in public services and subsequently in their service design. Particularly fond of working in mental health, 'othered' populations, public policy, special and inclusive education/ employment, behavioural UX, not-for-profit sector.
Professor Dagmara Dimitriou is the Professor of Sleep Education and Research at University College London and director of Sleep Education and Research Laboratory-SERL, which focuses on research examining sleep and mental health in individuals with different developmental and medical conditions. I have published over 100 peer-reviewed articles, book chapters, guidelines, and reports on sleep, cognition, developmental disorders, and medical conditions. My research and consultancy focus is on the development of new sleep interventions and treatments for people across their lifespan. I also carry out autism assessments using the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule 2 (ADOS-2) and a range of behavioural tools.
Dr Stacey Bissell conducts sleep-focused and behavioural research with children diagnosed with rare genetic syndromes associated with autism, epilepsy and intellectual disability. She has specific research expertise working with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC), Smith-Magenis syndrome, Potocki-Lupski syndrome, SATB2-associated syndrome and Kleefstra syndrome. Her current work: i) profiles sleep and behaviour in children with TSC using actigraphy and mobile app technology, ii) profiles sleep in same-household siblings of children who have complex nocturnal health needs, and iii) utilises qualitative methodologies with TSC families to capture lived experiences and priorities for sleep management service provision and support.
Florian Gahleitner is a Paediatric Consultant at NHS Lothian Trust. His areas of expertise include Asthma and Asthma Management, sleep disorders, cystic fibrosis and lung disease. 
Sue McCabe is an Occupational Therapist in Western Australia.
Dr Julie Duncan is a Consultant in Paediatric Respiratory Medicine at Southampton Children’s Hospital. She completed a respiratory sleep training fellowship in London and oversees the sleep disordered breathing and long term ventilation regional services in Southampton. She is a member of the British Paediatric Sleep Society and the Canadian Thoracic Society guideline panel for the diagnosis and management of obstructive sleep apnoea. She is completing the European Respiratory Society Respiratory Sleep Training Programme. 
Dr Gilly Mancz is a senior teaching fellow at University of Southampton.  She is an experienced Specialist Community Public Health Nurse who has completed additional Family Nurse training. The Family Nurse programme is an evidence based intensive home visiting programme for young parents aged 24 and under. My clinical background is as an adult nurse, health visitor, specialist safeguarding nurse and family nurse supervisor including experience in a multiagency safeguarding team. My safeguarding experience includes that within Health Visiting, as well as working at Tier 4 of Children's Services (Child Protection/Child in Need), raising awareness of MET (missing, exploitation and trafficking) issues and working alongside children affected by MET..