Debbie Allnock holds a PhD in Social Policy from the University of Bristol. She is an Associate Professor at the Safer Young Lives Research Centre at the University of Bedfordshire, and is seconded as Head of Research and Review to the Vulnerability Knowledge and Practice Programme (VKPP), a national policing programme coordinating the policing response to vulnerability, and housed within the College of Policing. Debbie is Deputy Chair of the Institute for Applied Social Research ethics committee (IASR Research Ethics Institute Panel).

Debbie has carried out research with child and adult victim and survivors of child sexual abuse and exploitation, with particular interests in disclosure, service provision and experiences of the criminal justice system. More recently, Debbie’s role with the VKPP involves directing a research team which carries out both internally- and externally-focused research on cross-cutting themes and issues across vulnerability in policing.