
Dr Christine Corlet Walker
About
Christine is a political economist who specialises in postgrowth economics and the privatisation of social care. Her research with the Centre for the Understanding of Sustainable Prosperity asks how we can build resilient welfare systems that meet the needs of all within the means of the planet. Most recently, she has looked at how predatory financing in the care sector is creating poor outcomes for care workers and service users.
She has presented her work on growth dependency to policymakers at the European Commission, and is engaged in an ongoing capacity with the UK's All-Party Parliamentary Group on Limits to Growth. Christine drafted a series of amendments to the Health & Care Bill that were debated in the House of Lords in early 2022, as well as co-developing a House of Commons Early Day Motion on the financialisation of adult social care. Her work has featured in The Morning Star, The Daily Express, The Guardian, The Conversation, BBC Radio Surrey and on a recent episode of BBC Panorama's Crisis in Care series.
Alongside her core PhD research, Christine has collaborated with national and international charities, NGOs and research institutes on projects addressing alternative indicators of societal welfare, the UK's housing crisis, wellbeing economics, and nature restoration. Prior to CUSP, she worked for several years as a third sector consultant and researcher. Christine holds an MSc in Ecological Economics from the University of Edinburgh, and an MA in Natural Sciences from the University of Cambridge.
News
In the media
ResearchResearch projects
Financialisation of adult social careThis project has investigated the role of marketisation and financialisation in generating poor outcomes in the adult social care sector. We analysed the financial accounts of the five largest care home chains in the UK to identify the prevalence of financial engineering within them. We further interviewed care staff about their experiences of working in care homes that were taken over by financialised firms.
Welfare without growthThis project is focused on developing our understanding of how our welfare systems depend on economic growth. Through this project we reviewed existing knowledge about welfare in a non-growing economy, and developed a framework for identifying, anlaysing and overcoming growth dependencies in our welfare state.
Research projects
This project has investigated the role of marketisation and financialisation in generating poor outcomes in the adult social care sector. We analysed the financial accounts of the five largest care home chains in the UK to identify the prevalence of financial engineering within them. We further interviewed care staff about their experiences of working in care homes that were taken over by financialised firms.
This project is focused on developing our understanding of how our welfare systems depend on economic growth. Through this project we reviewed existing knowledge about welfare in a non-growing economy, and developed a framework for identifying, anlaysing and overcoming growth dependencies in our welfare state.
Teaching
Academic supervisor for MSc students, University of Edinburgh.
Lecturer on Ecological Economics MSc module, University of Surrey.
Module content developer for MSt in Sustainability Leadership, University of Cambridge.
Publications
Highlights
Walker, C.C., Druckman, A. and Jackson, T., 2022. A critique of the marketisation of long-term residential and nursing home care. The Lancet Healthy Longevity, 3(4), E298-E306.
Walker, C.C., Druckman, A. and Jackson, T., 2021. Welfare systems without economic growth: A review of the challenges and next steps for the field. Ecological Economics, 186, p.107066.
Corlet Walker, C., Druckman, A. and Cattaneo, C., 2020. Understanding the (non-) use of societal wellbeing indicators in national policy development: What can we learn from civil servants? A UK case study. Social Indicators Research, 150(3), pp.911-953.
- exploiting care staff;
- cutting corners on service delivery;
- covering up mismanagement;
- failing to communicate; and
- prioritising profit over care.