Tell us about yourself

I am an Associate Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice in the School of Law at the University of Leeds. I have been engaged in collaborative work with criminal justice partners for over 20 years, on projects funded by organisations including the Home Office, the Crown Prosecution Service, the Nuffield Foundation, the N8 Policing Research Partnership (PRP) and local criminal justice organisations.

Since 2014, my work has focused on family violence. I led the first national study of local responses to child-to-parent violence (CPV) in England and Wales (with Dr Amanda Holt), the findings from which were published in the British Journal of Criminology.

More recently, I led an N8 PRP-funded project on police responses to CPV. My latest study, Understanding the Geospatial and Contextual Patterns of Rural Domestic Abuse, was conducted in collaboration with Cumbria Constabulary with funding from the Home Office Police STAR Fund.

I also have longstanding research interests in Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) experiences of criminal justice, dating back to my post-doctoral work on a Home Office-funded study of BAME men on probation. The findings from my recent work (with Dr Jose Pina-Sanchez) for the Crown Prosecution Service examined ethnic disparities in charging decisions and have been widely reported.

Why did you want to become a Research Affiliate?

I am interested in keeping abreast of the Centre’s work and participating in Centre events, particularly as they relate to police responses to domestic abuse, and also the policing of minority ethnic groups. I am also keen to disseminate my own research through Centre networks and write content for the Centre in and around my research.

How does your research connect to the Centre’s mission and values?

The Centre’s aim to shape the future of policing and improve outcomes for vulnerable people through research connects directly with my research. I have worked closely with Cumbria Constabulary, and also West Yorkshire Police, to improve police understandings of and responses to domestic abuse, including (but not limited to) intimate partner abuse. This work has had significant impacts on local policy and practice.