Dr Mellissa Prunty
Honorary Reader
Mary Seacole 301
- Email: mellissa.prunty@brunel.ac.uk
- Tel: +44 (0)1895 268843
- Life Sciences
Summary
Mellissa was the Divisional Lead for Occupational Therapy at СʪÃÃÊÓƵ London until November 2024. She is a children's Occupational Therapist by background. She qualified from the MSc (pre-reg) programme at Glasgow Caledonian University in 2010. She previously completed a BSc (Hons) in Kinesiology at Memorial University of Newfoundland in Canada, while on athletic scholarship for women’s basketball. She completed her PhD on handwriting difficulties in children with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD), which she undertook at Oxford Brookes University under the supervision of Prof. Anna Barnett, Dr. Mandy Plumb and Dr. Kate Wilmut. Mellissa has worked in a variety of childrens' services and specialises in working with children with coordination difficulties. She founded the Kidspace children's occupational therapy research clinic at the university which investigates key skills and participation in childhood including handwriting, activities of daily living and . The clinic currently offers placements to occupational therapy students at the university. Separate to this Mellissa co-led the development of wheelchair basketball and disability sport on campus. She has organised a series of inter-professional training days for health care students and has incorporated wheelchair basketball into the occupational therapy curriculum. The wheelchair basketball project has now expanded into the local community and a new club for children and adults is now underway (Brunel Bulls).
Mellissa joined СʪÃÃÊÓƵ London as a Lecturer in October 2013 and left her position in November 2024. She remains in an Honorary Reader position with a focus on research and scholarship projects.
Responsibility
Divisional Lead and Reader in Occupational Therapy 2022-2024
Senior Lecturer in Occupational Therapy 2018-2022
Lecturer in Occupational Therapy 2014-2018
Former Programme Director for the ACOTE accredited MSc Occupational Therapy Programme (2020-2022)
Former Programme Lead for the BSc Occupational Therapy Programme (2022-2024)
Newest selected publications
Steenbergen, B., Valtr, L., Dunford, C., Prunty, M., Bekhuis, H., Temlali, TY., et al. (2024) ''. Frontiers in Public Health, 12. pp. 1 - 7. ISSN: 2296-2565
Sumner, E., Nightingale, R., Gurney, K., Prunty, M. and Barnett, AL. (2023) ''. Literacy, 0 (ahead-of-print). pp. 1 - 12. ISSN: 0034-0472
Nightingale, R., Barnett, A., Sumner, E. and Prunty, M. (2022) ''.Royal College of Occupational Thera[pists Annual Conference (RCOT 2022). Virtual. 1 - 15 June. British Journal of Occupational Therapy. pp. 20 - 21. ISSN: 0308-0226
Nightingale, R., Sumner, E., Prunty, M. and Barnett, AL. (2022) ''. British Journal of Occupational Therapy, 85 (11). pp. 891 - 899. ISSN: 0308-0226
Barnett, A., Gurney, K., Nightingale, R. and Sumner, E. (2022) 'HANDWRITING AND TYPING SUPPORT IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN ENGLAND'.International Developmental Coordination Disorder -14 conference. Vancouver, Canada. [unpublished]