Fiona Mitchell is the co-ordinator for the Scottish Child Care and Protection Network (http://www.sccpn.stir.ac.uk/). In this clip she talks about an evaluation to explore the most effective ways of delivering Return Home Welfare Interviews (RHWI) for young runaways, which Fiona was involve in along with Margaret Malloch and Cheryl Burgess (University of Stirling) and Vanessa Chan, Jane Eunson, Lorraine Murray (IPSOS Mori Scotland). The evaluation focused solely on the role of the police in delivering RHWIs so is unable to draw comparisons with delivery by other agencies. The evaluation looked at the operation of a pilot as implemented by Grampian police force in Aberdeen City and Elgin, and one area in Aberdeenshire (Fraserburgh) formed the control area for comparison with original practice in Grampian and current practice outwith the pilot areas.The principal conclusion of the evaluation is that RHWIs are an appropriate intervention; helping identify young people who require further support and referring them to an appropriate agency. Even without an onward referral, they can improve outcomes by helping young people appreciate the value of talking about their problems rather than running away. RHWIs may be of most benefit to young people not already involved with services (just under a third of those who received a RHWI during the pilot period were not already involved with social work services). When young people were already accessing other services, other professionals were less convinced of the benefits of the RHWI. However, as the evaluation highlights, even where other services were in place, the RHWIs could provide benefits by obtaining information from young people which was not already known to services; and by providing the young person with an additional opportunity to engage and to access support by doing so. RWHIs, alongside appropriate responses by other agencies, have the potential to ensure that services meet the needs of some young runaways. The full report of the evaluation discussed in this clip is available to download here - http://www.sccjr.ac.uk/pubs/Evaluation-of-the-Grampian-Police-Return-Home-Welfare-Interview-Pilot-for-Young-Runaways/275

Beth Weaver is lecturer at the Glasgow School of Social Work, University of Strathclyde. Here she talks about research she has been working on with Sarah Armstrong (University of Glasgow) entitled 'What the punished think of their punishment'. The research involved speaking with 35 men and women ranging in age from 19 to 55 about their experiences of punishment. The aim was to accurately describe the experience for offenders of doing a short sentence, in prison or the community. Here Beth talks about the key findings from the research and the implications for policy and practice. The research being discussed is available to download here: http://www.sccjr.ac.uk/pubs/What-Do-the-Punished-Think-of-Punishment-The-comparative-experience-of-short-term-prison-sentences-and-communitybased-punishments/284, and has been awarded a prize from the Howard League for Penal Reform.

This discussion explores the role and value of criminology, and academia more broadly, in a democratic society. The recent publication by Ian Loader and Richard Sparks, Public Criminology?, is taken as the starting point for discussion, and after outlining some of the key points of the book, participants respond with their own experiences and perspectives. Participating in this recording are: Richard Sparks, Professor of Criminology (University of Edinburgh, Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research) Sarah Armstrong, Research Fellow (University of Glasgow, Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research) Ian Loader, Professor of Criminology (University of Oxford, Director of the Centre of Criminology) Fergus McNeill, Professor of Criminology and Social Work (University of Glasgow, Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research) Jonathan Simon, Professor of Law (University of California Berkley) For further details of the book under discussion - Public Criminology? – see http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9780415445504/. Jonathan Simon's blog 'Governing Through Crime', discussed in the recording, is available at governingthroughcrime.blogspot.com. Note: This recording is part of a discussion series which aims to encourage and capture discussion and debate, and to share academic thinking and research findings as widely as possible. The project is supported by the Higher Education Academy: C-SAP Network, Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research (SCCJR) and the Institute for Research and Innovation in Social Services (IRISS).