Dr Nicola Mallowan

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Biography

Nicola is associate professor in forensic psychology at Bucks New University.

She is programme director for the BPS-accredited online MSc in applied forensic psychology and leads the undergraduate psychology cluster.

Nicola is a chartered psychologist with the British Psychological Society (BPS), a senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA), and holds Aurora accreditation in women’s leadership. She also serves as the continuous professional development lead for the British Psychological Society’s Division of Forensic Psychology.

She has acted as an external adviser for Keele University and Bath Spa University, and is currently an external examiner for the University of Gloucestershire.

At Bucks New University, she leads the drug and alcohol research group, contributed to the University’s first staff and student drug and alcohol policy, and has reviewed National Institute for Health and Care Research substance-misuse funding applications.

Her early career in the National Probation Service, now part of His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service, and in the charity sector shaped her applied expertise in substance misuse, risk assessment and criminal justice interventions. This experience continues to underpin her teaching, research and curriculum design.

Nicola's research bridges professional practice and academic enquiry. Her interests include substance misuse, prison reform, Imprisonment for Public Protection sentences, rehabilitation, perceptions of crime and marginalised communities.

She completed her PhD in 2013, examining practitioner bias in drug-treatment outcomes, and led Bucks New University’s inaugural prison reform conference in 2024. In 2025, she received the Bucks New University students’ union award for excellence in academic leadership.

Her further credentials include senior Fellow status with Advance HE, co-director of Freedom Kura, art therapy for vulnerable women, chair of BNU drug and alcohol research group; committee member of the British Psychological Society Division of Forensic Psychology.

Declaration of any potential conflicts of interest

N/A