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New research will set out to examine the emotional world of solitary confinement. Dr Ben Laws from the Institute of Criminology discusses his project, and how the experience of ‘deep confinement’ might shape the lives of prisoners.

The Lammy Review in 2017 drew attention to inequalities among black, Asian and minority ethnic people in the criminal justice system. It also flagged the over-representation of Muslims in prisons. Research by Dr Ryan Williams explores the sensitivities around this topic.

Six academics from the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge have been made Fellows of the prestigious British Academy for the humanities and social sciences.

A pioneering project to teach university students alongside prisoners, so that they learn from each other, has proved remarkably successful. ̽��ֱ��creators of Learning Together, Drs Ruth Armstrong and Amy Ludlow, are now expanding the scheme and seeking to widen participation across university departments.

Poor access to health care and confusion over post-detention care may have contributed to more than 400 deaths following police custody and prison detention since 2009, a new report has claimed. Here, in an article first published on ̽��ֱ��Conversation, report authors Loraine Gelsthorpe and Nicola Padfield of Cambridge's Faculty of Law, along with their colleague Jake Phillips from Sheffield Hallam  ̽��ֱ��, discuss their findings. 

A highly innovative project in which Cambridge students and prisoners studied together at a Category B prison in Buckinghamshire has broken down prejudices and created new possibilities for all of those who took part. ̽��ֱ��researchers behind it suggest that more such collaborative learning initiatives could help dismantle stereotypes and offer prisoners a meaningful vision for the future after release.

In the wake of a recent increase in prisoner suicide, new research commissioned by the Harris Review on the views and experiences of prison staff suggests that identifying and managing vulnerable prisoners requires the building of staff-prisoner relationships, ‘knowing the prisoners and understanding what makes them tick’. However, prison staff say that this has been adversely affected by the need to deliver budgetary savings.

For thousands of people in Britain, prison is a grim reality. For the rest of us, it holds a fascination that is all too often simply prurient. Jason Warr, a PhD student at Cambridge ̽��ֱ�� who has served a custodial sentence himself, offers a critique of television documentaries filmed behind bars.

With recent reports stating that almost three quarters of those charged with offences during the London riots had prior convictions, attention has turned to Justice Secretary Kenneth Clarke’s description of Britain’s “broken penal system”. Johann Koehler, from the Institute of Criminology, discusses some of the latest projects to reduce reoffending, and how politicians may have to risk the ‘soft on crime’ label to move forward.

Criminologists in Cambridge are investigating the origins, prevention and control of crime in a fast-changing world.