She might have reached her 70s and had a long, successful and varied career in nursing, social work and community projects, but there was no way that Audrey Robinson-Maynard would settle for a quiet and easy retirement.

Instead, she embarked on highly-detailed, globally-ranging research into the burgeoning field of social marketing and now, at the age of 77, has been awarded a PhD at the University of Huddersfield. She is now considering a new project that could lead to innovation in the care home sector.

Her doctorate was conferred during the latest round of University of Huddersfield graduation ceremonies, in recognition of research that provides social marketers with a series of benchmarks to aid the success of their campaigns in fields, such as health education and environmental awareness.

Originating over 40 years ago, social marketing aims to develop campaigns which persuade people that if they change their behaviour – by quitting smoking, for example – then they will gain from it personally.

Dr Robinson-Maynard’s PhD is the latest addition to qualifications she has obtained during a career that began when she came to the North of England from Jamaica in 1959, in order to train as a nurse. After an interlude running her own hair and beauty business in Huddersfield, she moved into social work – gaining a Huddersfield BA degree in Social Welfare Administration, later complemented by an MSc at London Guildhall University in Care Policy and Management.

She relocated to London to boost her career and achieved success at Brent Council, moving up the ladder to become Divisional Manager for Children’s Assessment Services in a borough that presented many challenges to social workers. When she retired from that post, Dr Robinson-Maynard – who has five children – moved back to Huddersfield, where, in addition to her hair and beauty business, she had been involved in voluntary work.

“I like people to have some involvement, and to empower them. That is how you get the best out of them,” she says. This philosophy is at the heart of a new project she is considering – a “shared care” business that would mean older people having more say over their care. It is sector that is badly in need of improvement, says Dr Robinson-Maynard.

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