Rate My Professor Simon Leadley

Simon Leadley is a lecturer in the Department of Occupational Therapy, School of Primary and Allied Health Care, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences at Monash University. Accredited with Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA), he earned a Bachelor of Occupational Therapy from Auckland University of Technology in 1999, a Master of Health Science in Occupational Science from the same institution in 2019 exploring the impact of material poverty on a child’s occupational patterns via case study methodology, and a Doctor of Philosophy in Occupational Science in 2024, awarded a scholarship, investigating how poverty shapes tamariki/children’s occupational participation, potential, and wellbeing. His professional career spans diverse occupational therapy roles in acute and rehabilitation hospitals, community physical health settings, vocational rehabilitation, ergonomics, chronic pain rehabilitation, and mental health including inpatient forensic and community recovery programs, with senior clinical leadership experience.

Leadley’s research focuses on poverty especially child poverty, public and population health including climate action, mental health, recovery, and trauma-informed care, emphasizing occupational science and therapy’s transdisciplinary contributions to addressing societal challenges. Key publications include “An occupational perspective of childhood poverty” (New Zealand Journal of Occupational Therapy, 2017), “The Kawa Model: Informing the development of a culturally sensitive occupational therapy assessment tool in Aotearoa/New Zealand” (New Zealand Journal of Occupational Therapy, 2015), “The ways poverty influences a tamaiti/child’s patterns of participation” (Journal of Occupational Science, 2020), “Environmental Sustainability: A Rationale in Support of Occupational Therapy New Zealand Whakaora Ngangahau Aotearoa’s Position Statement” (New Zealand Journal of Occupational Therapy, 2023), and “Case Study Methodology” (book chapter, Routledge, 2024). He has presented at conferences in Aotearoa New Zealand, peer-reviews for the New Zealand Journal of Occupational Therapy, and serves on the Monash University Ethics Committee, as Early Career Researcher Representative for his school, and in the OT Academics Network of the Centre for Mental Health Learning Victoria. Leadley supervises honours and masters students and accepts PhD candidates on child poverty and occupational participation topics. He is a member of the Australian and Aotearoa New Zealand Occupational Therapy Associations and the Child Poverty Action Group.