This research project will engage with racially diverse young people and community leaders in Harehills, Leeds to understand their experiences of youth violence in the area.
The project will explore racially diverse young people and community leaders’ perceptions of interactions with the police, and examine the effectiveness of youth and educational services in the area for providing safety and support. The project will run from May 2025 – April 2027.
“This important project shines a vital light on the experiences of young people of colour in Harehills, particularly their interactions with police and support services. By working closely with the community, it not only seeks to understand youth experiences of violence but also challenges harmful perceptions and in doing so it seeks to drives positive change. Through evaluating the effectiveness of local services, this project offers a crucial step toward building trust, improving support and creating a safer, more inclusive environment for all young people in Harehills” ~ Richard Burgon, Labour MP for Leeds East.
West Yorkshire Police have been working with members of the Harehills community to address fears about violent crime among young people. However, while youth funding has been directed to Harehills by the local council, the effects of wider cuts to public services, and the cost of living crisis, continue to be felt in the area, particularly impacting vulnerable young people. Furthermore, recent disorders in Harehills concerning the Roma community in October 2024, have contributed to increased scrutiny following a barrage of negative media reports portraying the community as dangerous, deprived and unsafe.
Adopting the Centre’s anti-racist framework, the project focuses on the lived experiences of racially diverse youth in Harehills.
Living in Harehills means that young people are likely to grow up in communities where groups considered racial minorities in the national context are the local majority. It is necessary to understand how racial identity might be positively or negatively associated with youth risk and resilience. One hypothesis is that racial identity is a risk factor for youth violence and police injustice, especially when coupled with experiences of racial discrimination and the stigma of living in economically deprived and unsafe neighborhood contexts. In contrast, however, from a positive youth development perspective, racial identity could be a resilience factor when coupled with pride-in place, place-based extracurricular activities and positive interpersonal experiences when engaging with youth and educational services.
Evidence from the lived experiences of racially diverse young people is important to highlight and address inequalities, as well as challenge negative mainstream narratives. It can also provide positive counternarratives about the role racial identity plays in youth violence and police (in)justice.
This project aims to change the narrative on youth violence and police (in)justice in the Harehills community by focusing on the lived experiences of young people of colour to critically understand their needs, their concerns, and their priorities. Specifically, the project team will answer the following research questions:
- How do young people of colour perceive policing and safety in the area?
- In what ways are their vulnerabilities exacerbated by their racialized identities?
- How do young people of colour feel about negative media reporting on Harehills in relation to youth crime?
- What have been the effects of cuts to public services on young people in the area?
- As racialized minorities, to what extent do young people in Harehills feel excluded by support services?
- What are young people’s visions for change in Harehills?
Using participatory action research methods, the team will collect data using semi-structured interviews and focus groups with young people and community leaders from Harehills. Additionally, the team will use activity-based methods to engage with young people including arts-based methods, walking ethnography, digital ethnography, and experience maps.
Lead investigators
- Dr Katy Sian (University of York)
- Dr Nadia Jessop (University of York)
- Professor Kate Brown (University of York)
Postdoctoral researchers
- Dr Rosie Campbell (University of York)
- Dr David Rowlands (University of Leeds)
- Dr Öznur Yardımcı (University of York)
The team will work collaboratively with participants to centre the voices of young people of colour and collectively develop sustainable solutions to empower young people to address issues of youth violence and police (in)justice in Harehills. Specifically, the team will coproduce the following outputs:
- A community-led action plan
- Community-led workshops
- An accessible community report
