Helen is Professor of Psychology in the School of Psychology and Sport Science and a Visiting Professor at the Caribbean Institute for Health Research (CAIHR), University of the West Indies (UWI), Jamaica.  Helen’s research focuses on early childhood interventions to promote child development, behaviour and mental health and to prevent violence against children in low and middle-income countries.

Helen leads the Irie Toolbox Team within CAIHR, UWI whose work involves designing, implementing, evaluating and scaling up interventions to prevent violence against children at home and at school.

Helen is also a member of the Reach-Up team. Reach Up is an evidence-based, early childhood parenting intervention implemented in more than twenty countries across the Caribbean and Latin America, South Asia, East Asia, Central Asia, Africa, and with refugee populations in the Middle East.

Helen is a research affiliate of Yale Inclusion Economics: https://ie.yale.edu/people/helen-baker-henningham

[email protected]

Helen's main research interests are in the design, implementation, evaluation and scaling up of early childhood interventions to promote child development and behaviour and to prevent violence against children in low and middle-income countries. She is currently working on research projects in Jamaica, Bangladesh, Colombia,  Indonesia and Kenya.

Helen teaches a module entitled 'Global Early Childhood' at the Masters level

2026-2028: Global Schools Forum.  Near-Peer Literacy Circles: Scaling Mozambique’s In-School Mentorship Model to Accelerate Fluency in Grades 1-3. Investigators: Pereira Pinto C (Co-PI),  Baker-Henningham H (Co-PI), Meghir C (Co-PI), Neves H, Adamo A., Chaquisse A., Daúd S.

2026: Impact Acceleration Fund. Improving young children’s development in low- and middle-income countries through interventions with parents and teachers. Investigator: H Baker-Henningham (PI)

2025-2026: International Science Partnership Fund. Develop and pilot a daycare intervention in garment factories in Bangladesh. H Baker-Henningham (PI), J Hamadani, N E-Salveen, T Francis.

2025: J-PAL Innovation in Government Initiative. Early stimulation intervention to nurture parents and children: Adapting Reach Up and Learn to Indonesian context. M Roseles Rueda, M Triyana, H Baker-Henningham (Co-PI), E Galasso.

2024-2026. J-PAL Learning for All Initiative. A randomized evaluation of an enhanced preschool intervention on child learning and female empowerment in Kenya. C Meghir, H Baker-Henningham (Co-PI), T Mwoma, D Naivasha, S Onywere, JS Oteyo, J Waudo.

2024-2025: International Science Project Fund. Embedding an early childhood violence prevention programme into the services provided through community preschools in Jamaica. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham (PI), T Francis, M Bowers.

2023-2026: Yale Economic Growth Centre, Yale University. A randomised evaluation of the effects of a preschool intervention on child learning and female economic empowerment in Tharaka Nithi County, Kenya. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham (PI), T Francis, M Bowers (subcontract with Costas Meghir as PI and in collaboration with Kenyatta University).

2023-2024: Gender and Diversity Lab, Inter-American Development Bank. Preparing to scale an early childhood, violence prevention parenting program in Jamaica. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham (PI), T Francis, M Bowers.

2022-2027: Oxford Policy Management (Funded through FCDO). Research into taking early childhood development (ECD) interventions to scale (THRIVE). H Baker-Henningham (International PI for Bangladesh portfolio), Jena Hamadani (national PI) and Syeda Fardina Mehrin, Sheikh Jamal Hossain, Nur-E-Salveen (Co-Is).

2022-2023: UKRI, GNCA grant. Scaling an integrated violence prevention and early childhood development teacher-training intervention in Jamaica. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham (PI), T Francis, M Bowers.

2022-2023 World Bank, DECRG. Exploratory grant proposal: Nurturing parents and children with Reach Up and Learn in Indonesia. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham, E Galasso, A Maria Munoz, MTriyana, M Rosales-Rueda.

2022-2023 World Bank, Strategic Impact Evaluation Fund. Violent Discipline and Child Behavior: The Short and Mid-term Effects of a Virtual Parenting Support to Caregivers in Jamaica. Investigators: L Dinarte-Diaz, H Baker-Henningham H, S Powers, R Ravindran, M Shah. 

2021-2022 World Bank.  Are the benefits of an early childhood development program sustained and do benefits spillover onto younger siblings? A medium run follow-up to the Bangladesh Reach-Up trial. Investigators: J Friedman, J Hamadani, S Grantham-McGregor, C Meghir, O Attanasio, H Alderman,  H Baker-Henningham, F Tofail,  F Mehrin.

 2021-2022: UNICEF Jamaica. IRIE Classroom Toolbox hybrid delivery with the addition of a functional literacy and numeracy module. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham (PI), M Bowers, T Francis.

2021: World Bank Early Learning Partnership Programme. Designing a virtual parent place programme to prevent violence against young children in Jamaica. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham, T Francis, M Bowers (subcontract of a grant with L. Dinarte as PI).

2021-2023: USAID: Development Innovation Ventures. Nurturing parents and children in Indonesia: an early stimulation intervention. Investigators: M Triyana, M Rosales, E Satriawan, H Baker-Henningham.

2020-2022: Grand Challenges Canada, Porticus, World Bank.  Saving Bangladeshi Babies Brains (SB3). Investigators: JD Hamadani, F Tofail, SF Mehrin, SE Arifeen, H Baker-Henningham, S Grantham-McGregor.

2019-2021: GCRF Research and Impact Grant, HEFCW. An Integrated Violence Prevention and Early Childhood Development Programme Across Home and School Settings for National Dissemination in Jamaica. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham (PI), M Bowers, T Francis.

2019-2020: UNICEF Jamaica. Dissemination of the IRIE Classroom Toolbox. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham (PI), M Bowers, T Francis.

2018-2019: GCRF Impact grant, HEFCW. Developing Technical Guides for Training of Supervision of an Evidence-Based Group Parenting Programme to Promote Early Child Development in Low- and Middle Income Countries. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham (PI), J Hamadani, M Rubio-Codina, SF Mehrin, M Gomez, S Grantham-McGregor.

2018-2019 MRC/Wellcome Trust/DfID/NIHR. Joint Global Health Trials Scheme. Development and evaluation of an integrated early childhood development and violence prevention teacher-training intervention in Jamaican preschools. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham (PI), M Vera-Hernandez, S Walker.

2017-2019 British Academy. Scaling up an early childhood development intervention by integrating into health services in Bangladesh. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham (PI), J Hamadani, F Tofail, S Grantham-McGregor.

2017-2019 Grand Challenges Canada. ‘The Irie Homes Toolbox’: development and evaluation. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham (PI), T Francis, M Bowers.

2014-2018 MRC/Wellcome Trust/DfID Joint Global Health Trials Scheme. The “Irie Classrooms Toolbox”: a cluster randomised trial of a universal violence prevention programme in Jamaican preschools. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham (PI), H Alderman, M Vera-Hernandez, S Walker.

2014-2016 Grand Challenges Canada. Developing, implementing and evaluating a teacher training intervention to promote child mental health in the early grades of primary school in Jamaica. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham (PI), Y Townsend, S Walker.

2013-2016 Grand Challenges, Canada. Promoting global child development: A web based intervention for parents and children, for use by community workers in low resource settings. Investigators: S Walker, C Powell, H Baker-Henningham, J Hamadani, M Rubio-Codina, S Grantham-McGregor.                                        

2013-2016 Grand Challenges, Canada. Transition to scale of an integrated program of nutrition and care and psychosocial stimulation to improve malnourished children’s development in Bangladesh. Investigators: J Hamadani, F Tofail, F Mehrin, H Baker-Henningham, D Ridout, S Grantham-McGregor.

2013-2016 Grand Challenges, Canada. An Integrated Intervention Targeted at Deprived Pre-School Children in Rural Colombia.Investigators: R Bernal, X Pena, O Attanasio, M Rubio-Codina, H Baker-Henningham, C Fernandez, C Meghir.     

2011-2013 Inter-American Development Bank. Home and health care delivery of early childhood stimulation. Investigators: S Walker, C Powell, S Chang, H Baker-Henningham, S McGregor, F Lopez Boo.

2011-2014 The Wellcome Trust, London, UK. Promoting young children’s social and emotional competence and preventing conduct problems: Follow-up of a cluster randomised controlled trial Investigators: H Baker-Henningham (PI), S Walker.

2007-2010 The Wellcome Trust, London, UK. Research Training Fellowship in Tropical Medicine: Promoting young children’s social and emotional competence and preventing conduct problems: A cluster randomised trial. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham (PI), S Walker, S Scott.

2005-2006 UNICEF, Jamaica. Promoting young children’s social and emotional competence and preventing aggression. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham (PI), S Walker, C Powell.

 2005-2006 Environmental Foundation of Jamaica. Promoting young children’s social and emotional competence and preventing aggression in basic schools. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham (PI), S Walker, C Powell.

2004-2006 Ministry of Education, Youth and Culture, Jamaica. Special Education Needs Study: a study of the prevalence of special educational needs amongst Jamaican primary school children and factors associated with special needs. Investigators: H Baker-Henningham (PI), S Walker, S Chang, M Samms-Vaughan, H Hickling.