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Safety and Security of Citizens and Society

Revealing how we can make society safer, improve the criminal justice system and confront safety challenges head on.

The current state of the ever-changing geopolitical landscape has created significant apprehension among individuals, communities, businesses, and states regarding major political, social, and economic changes. These tensions and challenges have become even more evident in light of the impact of Covid-19 and how it has, in the short term at least, impacted how we conduct our lives, our businesses, and our social and leisure activities.

We recognise that past approaches to improving the safety and security of citizens and society have become outdated due to social fragmentation and individualisation. The end result being the absence of connections and trust between individuals and society, and insufficient safe-keeping policies.

NTU’s research theme of Safety and Security of Citizens and Society connects world-leading researchers in science and technology, social sciences, and arts and humanities. Our researchers explore innovative solutions to the numerous policy challenges currently faced by local and global governments to make our society a safer and more secure place for all.

Past projects have looked at topics ranging from burglary security, harm prevention in prison environments, increasing awareness of the dangers of road flooding when driving, to tackling sexual abuse and victims’ rights in the criminal justice system.

This theme was initiated by NTU's world-leading research into 3D X-ray technology, which was awarded a Queen's Anniversary Prize in 2015. Spearheaded by Professor Paul Evans' research group, this technology has been patented and adopted commercially in aviation security and counter-terrorism applications around the world.

Key areas of focus

  • Crime, terrorism and public safety
  • Food safety and security
  • Environmental risks and safe ecosystems
  • Future technology
  • Exclusion, marginalisation, inequality and human rights
  • Safe and secure businesses and economies
  • Safe and secure health systems

Associated Research Centres

Centre for Policy, Citizenship and Society

The Centre for Policy, Citizenship and Society (CPCS) conducts research that seeks to understand the ways in which society operates, especially in relation to policy, theory and practice in social contexts.

Centre for Crime, Offending, Prevention and Engagement (COPE)

COPE contributes to the understanding of victimisation risk and crime harm, the transformation agenda for change in the Criminal Justice System, and community engagement with crime prevention.

Work, Informalisation and Place Research Centre

Providing innovative, interdisciplinary studies focusing on the spatial dimensions of contemporary work and employment in sectors such as hand car washes, nail bars, and small-scale garment manufacturing.

Centre for Rights and Justice

The Centre for Rights and Justice (CRJ) was established in 2013. It is an inclusive Centre with a diverse membership, bringing together research, practice and scholarship, in the broad areas of human rights and criminal justice.

Centre for Legal Education

Nottingham Law School's Centre for Legal Education drives the Law School's excellence and innovation in academic and professional legal education.

Centre for Business and Insolvency Law

The Centre for Business and Insolvency Law (CBIL) was founded in 2012 and brings together expertise in legal and business practice, both nationally and internationally, addressing important challenges and contributing to debates.

Excellence in Advocacy at NLS

Excellence in Advocacy builds upon Nottingham Law School's expertise in the design and delivery of advocacy training and aims to promote and develop the study of the practice and training of advocates.

Product Innovation Centre

The Product Innovation Centre conducts internationally leading research and offers sustainable solutions for providing products and services in a circular economy.

Centre for International Business Strategy and Decisions

The Centre for IBSD investigates research phenomena of international importance for individuals, groups, organisations, cultures, and nations.

The International Gaming Research Unit (IGRU)

The International Gaming Research Unit (IGRU) is a world leading research unit that has a primary research focus on the psychosocial factors related to various forms of gambling, gaming and behavioural addictions The unit has published over 350 refereed journal papers since 2014.

Our projects

Research projects

Discover research projects our academics are working on under the theme of Safety and Security of Citizens and Society.

Re:search Re:imagined

To us, research is about more than writing papers and proposing new ideas. By daring to think differently, we’re disrupting the research landscape and finding the answers to the questions that really matter.