PacLab Team

Jenny is Director of the Play and Communication Lab. She is Professor of Developmental Psychology at the Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge. She is a co-director of PEDAL the centre for research on Play in Education, Development and Learning, and an associate director of CHIA, the Centre for Human-Inspired Artificial Intelligence.

Jenny has long been fascinated by the connections between linguistic and social aspects of child development. Most of her research investigates this link, usually with neurodivergence, play and mental health as key topics. Jenny is also a qualified speech and language therapist, specialising in autism and developmental language disorder.

Following a career as a teacher and leader in secondary schools, Julie has researched barriers to inclusion for autistic and other neurodivergent students in secondary school and higher education. Alongside her research, Julie is a Specialist Learning Mentor for the University of Cambridge and was the founding Chair of Governors for The Cavendish School. 

Julie is Deputy Director of PacLab and teaches on a range of courses at the Faculty of Education, including Practitioner Professional Development courses aimed at educational professionals.  Julie's current research focuses on the role of artificial intelligence in support for disabled learners, executive function intervention, and the lived experience of neurodivergent learners.