Staff profile
Jonathon Dawes
Research Student
Affiliation |
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Research Student in the Department of Sport and Exercise Sciences |
Biography
Jonathon Dawes is a PhD student in the Department of Sport and Exercise Science at Durham University, funded by the Northern Ireland and North East England Doctoral Training Programme. Jonathon completed his MA in Research Methods (Political Science) at Durham University and his undergraduate degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE) at King's College London.
Jonathon’s research interests throughout his studies have been centred around sport policy,with his MA thesis critically exploring how and why policy is implemented in the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) as the National Governing Body for British Tennis and his undergraduate dissertation exploring to what extent was the LTA SERVES programme evidence-based. Jonathon's PhD thesis will explore Polycentricity, Power, Politics and ‘What Works’ in British Tennis, focusing on how and why different policies, programmes and organisations within the tennis ecosystem engage with underserved communities. Alongside his research, Jonathon is a Graduate Teaching Assistant on the SPRT1331 Introduction to Sport and Exercise Industries Module, which is led by his supervisor, Professor Iain Lindsey.
To complement his work at Durham University, Jonathon is involved in tennis at various levels of the game and has experience in policy and the wider sports industry.
He is an experienced tennis player, volunteer, university tennis leader, a former Board Member for Pride in Tennis, Wilson sponsored coach, winner of the 2019 LTA Young Person of the Year Award and Recipient of a British Citizens Award for services to tennis.Jonathon notably is the youngest-ever LTA Councillor in the governing bodies 137-yearhistory and winner of a King’s College London Distinguished Alumni Award and a King's College London Student Union Honorary Life Membership Award for “exception contributions to tennis”. He consults for The Queen’s Club Foundation, Cheshire Tennis, King’s College London and Tennis Scotland, leading initiatives in change management, leadership, project management, inclusion, governance, alumni relations, education and tennis heritage.
Jonathon has also had lead roles with Sport Wales and the Youth Sport Trust and is a former Member of the Welsh Youth Parliament, where he had a National Education Portfolio for Wales.
Research Interests
- Sport Policy and Politics
- Political Economy of Sport
- Inclusion and working with underserved communities in sport (specifically disability and LGBTQ+)
- Sports for Development
- Qualitative methods in Sport and Exercise Science
- Participatory Action Research in Sport
- Application of Realist of Evaluation in Sport
- Academia of Tennis across Disciplines
Scholarships
Northern Ireland and North East Doctoral Training Programme (NINE DTP) 1+3.5 Scholarship
Conferences
2025 Wimbledon History Conference