Matthew Sparkes is an Associate Teaching Professor with the Cambridge Research Methods Centre (CaRM) and a Director of Studies and Fellow in HSPS at Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge. He is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (HEA), and he convenes the Social Class Research Cluster.
His work examines the relationship between financialisation, personal debt, and inequality, with a particular focus on how policies shape borrowing practices and social outcomes. He studies the ways in which debt connects to neoliberal reforms and contributes to shifting patterns of class, culture, and gender dynamics.
He has published widely on the sociology of debt, housing, and credit, using both quantitative and qualitative methods. His early projects analysed international and social group variations in debt, the qualitative experiences of borrowing, and the historical development of consumer credit. More recent research investigates how credit scoring systems affect access to housing, employment, and financial security, including the challenges faced by “mortgage prisoners.”
Beyond publications, Matthew contributes to the academic community as a peer reviewer and editorial board member for several journals, and he has presented his work at numerous conferences, workshops, and policy events.
His research increasingly engages with policy and public debate. He presented findings at a Parliamentary Briefing on mortgage prisoners (2024), secured Centre for Science and Policy (CsaP) funding for a policy workshop on mortgage prisoners, and has contributed commentary to BBC, The Conversation, The Observer, and the Financial Times Adviser.
Recently, Matthew held a three-year secondment (2022–2025) as an Assistant Professor in Sociology. In this role, he convened Global Social Problems (SOC3), Sociology Dissertations , and the MPhil in Marginality and Exclusion. He also chaired the Sociology Ethics and Risk Assessment for Research (SERAR) Committee.
Before entering academia, Matthew worked as a Debt Advisor for StepChange Debt Charity. He earned his PhD in Sociology and MA in Social Research at the University of York, and his BA in Sociology from Leeds Metropolitan University.
