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News

Offenders view short-term sentences as waste of time

28th November 2018

Unlike long-term prisoners, those with short, repeated sentences rarely view such prison terms as transformative or effective at rehabilitation or deterrence, says a recent study among prisoners themselves into the meaning of serving short-term prison sentences repeatedly and over a long period of time. In a three-year study, SCCJR’s Dr...

Inaugural event: Young Women and Girls in Contemporary Scotland and Beyond

23rd November 2018

A group of University of Glasgow PhD researchers, collectively known as Girlhood Gang, hosted their first event on 5 September 2018. The conference, Young Women and Girls in Contemporary Scotland and Beyond, was held across Glasgow Women’s Library and Olympia Social Research Hub, and opened with a keynote from SCCJR’s Dr Susan Batchelor. Attendees with an interest in contemporary girlhood...

How just is justice? New project to develop ways of measuring justice experiences

22nd November 2018

Sarah Armstrong and Beth Weaver of SCCJR, and Trish McCulloch at Dundee University are leading a project to synthesise understanding of the ways that experiences of justice are understood and measured. The project is running October 2018 through May 2019 and funded by the Scottish Government. During this period they will be looking across the...

Announcing the Scottish Justice Fellows

19th November 2018

Winners of Scottish Justice Fellowships Announced FIVE PhD students have become the first recipients of a Scottish Justice Fellowship which will seem them turn their theses into research summaries and associated materials for policy makers and practitioners. We are delighted to announce the Fellows: Emma Forbes, Kirsty Deacon and Annie Crowley...

Scotland to form part of major European study into institutional responses to domestic abuse

12th November 2018

Researchers from the Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research (SCCJR) have received funding from EU Horizon 2020 to support research into how institutions, including the police and social work, respond to domestic abuse. SCCJR will work in partnership with Police Scotland to carry out the Scottish strand of the €2.9 million IMPRODOVA project, a three-year study which will see Prof Michele...

Innovative approach to repeat offending shows promise

5th September 2018

An innovative approach to dealing with repeat offenders in Aberdeen Sheriff Court has the potential to benefit other areas, after a new report published today said it “shows promise”. The Aberdeen Problem-Solving Approach (PSA) aims to reduce the use of custodial sentences, and cut reoffending, by addressing the underlying problems linked with...

Football used as scapegoat for domestic violence

7th August 2018

Scapegoating football as a trigger for domestic violence trivialises the issue and risks offering offenders an excuse for their behaviour, according to a UK study. Reports linking a spike in cases with the outcome of Old Firm games and England’s World Cup performance lack reliable data and fail to recognise abuse is a pattern of ongoing...

Call for applications for Scottish Justice Fellowships: PhDs into Policy and Practice

1st August 2018

The Scottish Government, the Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research (SCCJR) and the Scottish Institute for Policing Research (SIPR) are offering short-term fellowships to PhD students in Scotland to turn their thesis into research summaries and associated materials for policy makers and practitioners. There is substantial untapped resource...

Donna Yates awarded €1.5m European Research Council Starting Grant

31st July 2018

We are delighted to share the news that Dr Donna Yates has been awarded a large European Research Council Starting Grant to explore the role that objects play within transnational criminal networks. Donna’s 5 year project will also look at the broad question of “can objects cause crimes?” Using methodologies for understanding the...

Community’s Most Vulnerable Exploited by Serious Organised Crime Groups

4th June 2018

The changing face of serious organised crime, its impact in communities and the potential for local services to prevent exploitation, have been highlighted in new research. The 18-month study, which looked at serious organised crime (SOC) with deep roots in specific areas, as well as more ‘mobile’ forms of SOC, was published today (Mon 4 June)

Victim-survivors of rape and sexual assault will inform new research from SCCJR.

23rd May 2018

Research into the experiences of rape and sexual assault victim-survivors will help ensure the interests of victims are at the heart of the criminal justice system. The Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research (SCCJR) project will seek to identify and understand the range of factors that affect whether individuals who experience rape and...

SCCJR gives oral evidence on Management of Offenders (Scotland) Bill

15th May 2018

On May 15th, the Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research’s Dr Hannah Graham (University of Stirling) gave oral evidence to the Scottish Parliament’s Justice Committee on the Management of Offenders (Scotland) Bill. Others joining Hannah on the panel include: Liz Dougan, Partner, Brazenall and Orr Solicitors Leanne McQuillan,...

Ground-breaking research sees Scotland’s songwriters collaborate with individuals who have first-hand experience of the criminal justice system

11th May 2018

Distant Voices, a research project that has developed song-writing in Scottish prisons as an innovative way of exploring and enhancing rehabilitation and justice, is launching its debut album. The album, called Not Known at this Address, is a collaboration between Scottish song writing talent, people with direct experience of criminal justice,...

National project provides ‘life-changing’ advocacy work to victims of sexual violence

1st March 2018

AN innovative support service for victim-survivors of rape and serious sexual crime in Scotland has received overwhelmingly positive feedback from those accessing the service. Researchers from the Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research (SCCJR) were tasked with evaluating Rape Crisis Scotland’s National Advocacy Project (NAP). The service funded by the Scottish Government and launched in...

83% of British Transport Police Unsupportive of Merger with Police Scotland

21st February 2018

New research has found the majority (83%) of British Transport Police officers and staff in Scotland are either quite or very unsupportive of plans to integrate their division into Police Scotland. The findings come from the British Transport Police Leaving Home project which investigates the impact of integration on BTP D Division officers and...

Funding Call Launches New International Partnership for SCCJR

15th January 2018

SCCJR is delighted to welcome five new internationally renowned criminological research centres and departments as partner institutions. The new partnerships which have been formed with the Universities of Toronto, Oslo, Hong Kong as well as the Queensland University of Technology and the University of Leuven will solidify the Centre’s reputation for outstanding international collaboration. The...

Alistair Fraser to bring his research to BBC Radio 3 as a New Generation Thinker

16th March 2017

The SCCJR’s Alistair Fraser (University of Glasgow) has been confirmed as one of this year’s BBC Radio 3 New Generation Thinkers. Dr Fraser, whose research focuses on issues of youth and crime in a global context, beat off competition from across the UK to be one of 10 early-career researchers selected for the scheme, which is run in association with the Arts and Humanities...

SCCJR responds to proposed Scottish Crime and Justice Survey changes

7th March 2017

SCCJR academics have responded to the Scottish Government’s call for comments on proposed changes to the Scottish Crime and Justice Survey (SCJS). The SCJS is large-scale social survey asking people about their experiences and perceptions of crime. The survey questionnaire is being reviewed in preparation for the 2017/18 survey, and views were sought from users and stakeholders to...

New web project to explore the meaning of sentences

8th February 2017

Two SCCJR researchers are seeking contributions to an exciting new website, My Sentence. Research fellow Dr Marguerite Schinkel has teamed up with PhD student Alejandro Rubio Arnal on the project, which brings together their related research interests. Marguerite’s research focuses on people’s lived experiences of punishment, while Alejandro is interested in how public opinion...

New Distant Voices project to challenge views of ‘offender rehabilitation’

30th January 2017

Distant Voices, the partnership between Vox Liminis and the SCCJR, has secured funding for a new project, Coming Home. The Economic and Social Research Council (60%) and Arts and Humanities Research Council (40%) have agreed to co-fund the project, which is also supported by Creative Scotland, the Scottish Prison Service and Glasgow Community Justice Authority. The project will led by the...