I think that everyone, from whatever political perspective, will agree that the events of Saturday night in Clapham were regrettable. The image broadcast to the world was of a large gathering of women protesting male violence and mourning the death of a young woman with her whole life ahead of her. For this vigil... Continue Reading →
Taking teaching outside the classroom: crime and punishment in situ
On Monday this week I removed my second-year class on crime and punishment from the confines of a Waterside campus classroom (lovely as they are) and transported it to a real life courthouse in the centre of Northampton. Northampton’s Sessions House was built after the fire that destroyed much of the town in 1675.... Continue Reading →
Putting Undergraduates on Trial (this time with feelings)
For several years now I've been putting undergraduates on trial. Before you get excited I only mean as an exercise in understanding the criminal trial in the past, I don't lock them up or send them to Botany Bay! Each year I set an assessment which involves groups of 2nd year History and Criminology students... Continue Reading →
Inside Wandsworth Gaol: A historian’s perspective on prison visiting
As a academic historian who works on the history of crime (and most of that in London) when I was offered the chance to take a peek inside a working English prison I could hardly refuse. I run modules on crime and punishment at the University of Northampton and help students explore the changing nature... Continue Reading →