Saul Becker

Saul Becker is a British academic and social scientist known for his work on young carers, with Carers Trust and Caring Together Charity describing him as a world leader in the field. He is an author and editor of 18 books, including Young Carers and their Families and Responding to Poverty. He is currently (since 2023) the Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Head of the Faculty of Health and Education of Manchester Metropolitan University, and Founding Director of the Institute for Children's Futures. In 2025 Becker was appointed Deputy Lieutenant (DL) of Greater Manchester and is a trustee of various charities including the Manchester United Foundation.

Early life and education Becker is a former pupil of Rossall School and a graduate of the University of Nottingham: BA (1981); MA (1983); and PhD (1987). His Doctorate was on the relationships between poverty and the use of social services. He is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences (FAcSS) and the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA) and is a Registered Social Worker (RSW) with Social Work England. He has practiced as a local authority social worker and senior welfare rights officer before becoming a full-time academic.

Career In May 2022, Becker was appointed Professor of Children and Families at Manchester Metropolitan University. Previous posts held include: Director of Research & Andrew and Virginia Rudd Professor of Social Care Research and Education Practice, Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge; Provost and Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the University of Sussex, UK.; Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Head of the College of Social Sciences, University of Birmingham; Assistant Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Internationalisation), University of Nottingham; Head of the School of Social Policy and Sociology, University of Nottingham; Director of Research, Institute of Applied Social Studies, University of Birmingham; Co-Founder and Associate Director, Centre for Child and Family Research, Loughborough University.

Becker has served as Principal Investigator on 56 externally funded research projects.

His research impact has been recognised by the UK-wide charity Carers Trust which appointed him as their first-ever Ambassador, AccessHE which recognised him as a Role Model and Universities UK which named his as one of the Nation's Lifesavers.

He was a member of the UK Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2014 Social Work and Social Policy Sub-panel 22.

Publications Becker has published over 350 works, including 18 books, and has presented over 250 conference papers.

He was also the chair of the UK Social Policy Association and the founding series editor for the Policy Press Understanding Welfare book series. He and his work have featured in 9 television documentaries and hundreds of radio broadcasts. He was interviewed by Andrew Marr (2020) and Will Hutton (2024) on young carers, and the future of care in Britain. In 2025 Becker was appointed Deputy Lieutenant of Greater Manchester and is a trustee of various charities including the Manchester United Foundation.