This webinar will inform members about how the RCM supports and provides resources for midwives, student midwives and MSWs/MCAs who are new to research. This includes:

• Small Research Awards 2026
• RCM’s Research Buddy Scheme
• Education and Research Conference 2026

Why attend

1. Discover how the RCM offers members support with getting into research, evaluation or audit, including about our new Research Support Buddy Scheme
2. Hear from a previous Small Research Award winner, and learn about how to apply for the 2026 Awards
3. Learn about what opportunities there are to start research and find funding

Speakers

Jo Cull, Head of Nursing for Nurse and Midwife Led Research at ACORN (A Centre of Research for Nurses and Midwives), Guys and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust

Katie Handley, Clinical Lead for Maternal and Child Health, Genomics England

I am  working on the Generation Study, a groundbreaking research initiative aiming to sequence the genomes of 100,000 babies to identify and treat rare genetic conditions. In addition to my research work, I am also a midwife with experience in wards, community settings, and Quality and Risk Governance. After completing my Masters in Healthcare Ethics and Law, I am now pursuing a PhD in Bioethics and Medical Jurisprudence at the University of Manchester, focusing on the role of midwives in whole genome sequencing of newborns. Prior to my healthcare career, I served as an Intelligence Officer in the RAF.

Dalvir Kandola, Consultant Midwife for Inclusion, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust

As a consultant midwife, research is a key pillar of Dalvir’s role. She completed the inaugural programme ‘Into Research’ in 2024, supporting Black and Brown nurses and midwives to get into research. Following this, Dalvir was successful in being awarded a pre-application support fellowship in 2025 with NIHR ARC East Midlands, to support her ongoing development in health research. Her topic of interest relates to addressing health inequalities in maternity services and she was also awarded RCM Fellowship in 2025.  Dalvir leads on a workstream related to improving the culture and communication of research as part of the Institute of Excellence in Healthcare. She also contributed to the RCM Research Strategy 2025-2027 and has had a number of successful publications in a range of journals.

ORCiD

Professor Hora Soltani MBE, FRCM, Professor of Maternal and Infant Health, Sheffield Hallam University

Hora leads the Maternal and Infant Health Research theme including several interdisciplinary researchers and PhD students in Sheffield Hallam University.  Her research is of a collaborative nature, focusing on maternity care models reducing health inequalities for mothers and babies from the most disadvantaged backgrounds.

Hora was listed in the Elsevier top 2% cited scientists in her field in 2020 with a field adjusted impact of 2.4 according to SciVal 2021. She has also been acting as Editor/Senior Editorial Board member for journals and an expert advisor for organisations such as WHO and Public Health England. Hora was awarded an MBE in the Queen’s new year honour list (Dec 2020) for her services to higher education and impact on maternal and infant health, guiding maternity policy development at national and international levels.