May Bulman is a British investigative journalist whose work has focused on migration, human rights, borders, modern slavery, welfare, prisons and the growing use of technology in immigration systems. She is currently an Investigations Editor at Lighthouse Reports, an international investigative newsroom that works with journalists and major media organisations on cross-border investigations. Lighthouse Reports currently includes her among its Investigations Editors.
Before moving into collaborative investigative journalism, she spent more than five years as Social Affairs Correspondent at The Independent. Her work there gave sustained attention to people affected by immigration rules, homelessness, youth justice and the welfare system. The publication credits her with major journalism awards and recognitions, reflecting the impact of her work on difficult social issues.
Who Is May Bulman?
May Bulman was born on 14 May 1993 and is 33 years old as of 2026. Her date of birth can be established from a 2016 London Standard story published shortly after she was mugged while cycling in London. The piece described her as 23 and stated that the incident happened on her birthday on Saturday, 14 May 2016.
She comes from Milton Keynes, England. Long before becoming an established journalist, she studied English and French at the University of Southampton. A university feature from 2013 identified her as a third-year English and French student from Milton Keynes and highlighted her interest in creative writing and journalism.
Her career has since developed from student writing and newsroom internships into investigative work involving international teams, data, fieldwork, human rights evidence and major media partnerships.
May Bulman Age and Early Life
May Bulman is 33 years old in 2026. She turned 33 on 14 May 2026. Her childhood and school years have remained largely private. She attended Radcliffe School before moving into higher education. Unlike many media personalities, she has not built her career through personal celebrity. Her professional identity has instead centred on journalism and the subjects she covers.
The University of Southampton gave an early glimpse of her development as a writer. During her degree, she won recognition for a short story titled Grown Up, written after taking a creative writing module. The university stated that the experience encouraged her to think seriously about journalism as a career.
May Bulman Education
May Bulman studied at the University of Southampton from 2011 to 2015, completing a BA in English and French with First Class Honours. Her studies combined language, literature and writing, giving her a useful foundation for a career built on interviewing, analysis and clear communication.
Her degree also included international experience. During her university years, she spent time in France and worked in Dakar, Senegal. In 2014, she completed placements with BBC Afrique and the Senegalese newspaper Enquête. These early roles introduced her to international journalism and French-language media.
After Southampton, she attended City University London, now City St George’s, University of London. She completed an MA in Newspaper Journalism during 2015–2016. That postgraduate training came at an important point in her career, as she was already beginning to gain practical newsroom experience.
How May Bulman Started Her Journalism Career
Bulman began building journalism experience while still at university. She worked as an editor at The Tab from July 2014 until June 2015. She also completed an internship at The Mirror in early 2015. Her international placements in Dakar were particularly notable because they came before she became established in British national media. Working with BBC Afrique and Enquête placed her in an environment where language skills, international affairs and local context all mattered.
After beginning her master’s degree in London, she moved through several national journalism roles. She worked as a news reporter for The New Day from March to May 2016, followed by an internship with AFP in June and July 2016.
In August 2016, she worked on the Pride of Britain coverage for the Daily Mirror. These experiences gave her exposure to breaking news, national newspapers and agency journalism before she entered the role that would define the next major stage of her career.
May Bulman at The Independent
From Freelance Journalist to Social Affairs Correspondent
May Bulman began contributing to The Independent as a freelance journalist in January 2016. In February 2017, she became the newspaper’s Social Affairs Correspondent, a position she held until August 2022. Her work covered subjects that directly affected vulnerable and marginalised communities. Immigration became one of her strongest areas, but her remit also included prisons, youth justice, homelessness, modern slavery and welfare.
The Independent describes her as its former Social Affairs Correspondent and notes her particular interest in immigration, youth justice and homelessness. Her work often examined the consequences of government policy through the experiences of individuals and families. For example, she covered cases involving highly skilled migrants whose immigration status had been affected by Home Office decisions, examining the financial and emotional impact on people caught in lengthy legal processes.
Awards and Recognition
Bulman earned significant recognition during her time at The Independent. She won the Anti-Slavery Day Award for Best News Piece in 2017 and won the same honour again in 2019. These awards recognised her work concerning exploitation and modern slavery.
She was also shortlisted in the Specialist category at the 2019 British Journalism Awards. Earlier, in 2017, she was runner-up for Investigative Journalism at The Drum Online Media Awards for her refugee coverage. These achievements established her as a journalist capable of combining detailed investigation with strong human-centred storytelling.
May Bulman at Lighthouse Reports
In August 2022, Bulman joined Lighthouse Reports as an Investigations Editor. The organisation currently confirms her position within its editorial team. Her role is broader than writing individual stories. She coordinates teams of journalists, works on cross-border investigations and helps bring together evidence from different countries and reporting methods.
Her main areas include migration, borders and the effect of technology on human rights. New Lines Magazine also identifies her as a Lighthouse Reports Investigations Editor working mainly on migration and border investigations in Britain, Europe and beyond.
Investigating Borders and Migration
One major investigation connected with Bulman examined secret detention sites along European borders. Lighthouse Reports states that she helped lead work that uncovered visual evidence concerning refugees held in cages and examined financial links between European funding and border operations. She also took part in fieldwork involving drone footage at the Serbia-Lithuania border region.
Her work has also contributed to investigations into migrants and refugees being expelled into desert and remote areas in North Africa. The 2024 Desert Dumps investigation involved a large international team and examined European involvement in practices affecting Black migrants attempting to reach Europe.
Another project, Europe’s Nameless Dead, examined the treatment and identification of people who died while attempting migration routes into Europe. Bulman was among the journalists credited on the investigation.
May Bulman and the Afghan Commandos Investigation
One of her important recent projects concerned Afghan commandos who had worked alongside British forces. The investigation found that hundreds of former Afghan special forces personnel had been denied relocation to Britain despite having served in units funded and supported by the UK. Lighthouse Reports worked with The Independent and Sky News on the project.
Following the investigation and wider pressure, the UK Ministry of Defence accepted that there had been a failure in its process and agreed to review rejected cases individually. Bulman was among the journalists credited on the work. She later discussed how investigative journalism can create direct policy impact and how teams can structure investigations so important findings reach decision-makers as well as the wider audience.
Technology, AI and Human Rights
Another important part of Bulman’s recent work concerns the use of technology in immigration enforcement. Her professional focus includes the way automated systems, artificial intelligence and digital tools can affect migrants and asylum seekers. This area has become increasingly important as governments introduce technology into border management and decisions involving identity, age and migration status.
Her work connects technical systems with human consequences. Rather than treating border technology only as an engineering subject, she examines questions of fairness, accountability, discrimination and state responsibility. This combination of migration journalism and technology investigations has helped define the next stage of her career.
International Investigative Work
Bulman’s journalism is not limited to Britain. Her work has involved Europe, Africa and other regions, often through partnerships between newsrooms. She was among those credited on Lighthouse Reports’ Ukraine Exodus project in 2022, which examined unequal experiences faced by people escaping the war in Ukraine.
She also contributed to Blair and the Billionaire, a major 2025 collaborative investigation involving journalists and organisations across multiple countries. This type of work shows how her career has moved from a traditional national newspaper role toward international collaborative journalism.
May Bulman Husband, Partner and Family
May Bulman keeps her personal life separate from her professional work. There is no reliable confirmation of a husband, wife or long-term partner in the established sources examined for her career. She has also not made marriage or children a central part of her professional biography.
Details about her parents have similarly remained private. One personal family detail she has shared is the influence of her grandfather on her choice of profession. In a recent Instagram post, she described her grandfather as the person who inspired her to become a journalist.
Because her work deals with sensitive investigations and vulnerable communities, the separation between her professional presence and private life is understandable.
May Bulman on Social Media
Bulman has an established presence on X under @maybulman. Her account identifies her as an Investigations Editor at Lighthouse Reports and formerly a Social Affairs Correspondent at The Independent. The account had approximately 13.5K followers in August 2026.
She also operates the professional Instagram account @may.bulman, where she shares material connected with investigations, migration and human rights. The account had 353 followers, 237 following and 10 posts based on the figures provided in August 2026.
A recent collaborative reel with Lighthouse Reports editor Maud Jullien discussed the consequences of the EU Migration Pact for children seeking refuge in Europe. The subject fits closely with Bulman’s broader work on migration systems and children’s rights.
Her professional Instagram bio also directs followers to a separate account for non-work content, showing a clear distinction between her journalism and personal social media use.
What Makes May Bulman’s Journalism Important?
May Bulman has built her career by focusing on subjects where policy decisions can have serious effects on individuals. Migration law, asylum systems, modern slavery and border enforcement can easily become dominated by statistics and political arguments. Her journalism frequently brings those systems back to the people living through them.
Her move into Lighthouse Reports has also allowed her to work at a larger international scale. Collaborative investigations can combine traditional interviews with data analysis, open-source methods, financial evidence and field reporting. This approach has placed her at the intersection of investigative journalism, human rights and technology.
Where Is May Bulman Now?
As of 2026, May Bulman remains an Investigations Editor at Lighthouse Reports. She continues to work on cross-border investigations concerning migration, borders, state policy and technology. Her career has progressed from student writing and internships to national newspaper journalism and then to major international investigations.
At 33, she has already spent more than a decade developing experience across British and international media. Her work at The Independent established her expertise in social affairs, while Lighthouse Reports has expanded that focus into complex investigations involving multiple countries and news organisations.
Final Thoughts on May Bulman
May Bulman has developed a strong reputation through journalism focused on people whose lives are shaped by immigration systems, border policies and government decisions. Her academic background in English and French, early international experience and postgraduate journalism training created a foundation for a career that has become increasingly investigative and international.
From award-winning work on modern slavery to investigations concerning Afghan commandos, European border practices, migrant deaths and digital immigration systems, her career reflects a consistent interest in accountability and human rights.
She is now an experienced Investigations Editor whose work reaches far beyond a single newsroom. By combining detailed evidence with human stories, she continues to examine some of the most difficult questions facing migration policy and modern border systems.
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