Cambridge Institute of Criminology

Institute of Criminology
Institute of Criminology
Type Department of the University of Cambridge
Established 1959
Parent institution
Faculty of Law
Director Professor Manuel Eisner
Address , ,
United Kingdom
Website www.crim.cam.ac.uk

The Institute of Criminology is the criminological research institute within the Faculty of Law at the University of Cambridge. The institute is one of the oldest criminological research institutes in Europe, and has exerted a strong influence on the development of criminology. Its multidisciplinary teaching and research staff are recruited from the disciplines of law, psychiatry, psychology, and sociology. It is located on the Sidgwick Site in the west of Cambridge, England. The Institute of Criminology building was designed by Allies and Morrison. The institute is also home to the Radzinowicz Library, which houses the most comprehensive criminology collection in the United Kingdom. The institute has approximately 50 PhD students, 30-40 M.Phil. students, and 200 M.St students. The institute also offers courses to Cambridge undergraduates, particularly in law, but also in human social and political sciences and in psychology and behavioural sciences.

History

During World War II, Sir Leon Radzinowicz established the Department of Criminal Science in the Faculty of Law at the University of Cambridge. In 1959, as the field of criminology was met with increasing interest and success, Sir Leon Radzinowicz founded the Institute of Criminology with the support of a benefaction from the Wolfson Foundation and the Howard League for Penal Reform.

Research centres

The Institute publishes the Cambridge Crime Harm Index (CCHI), which is the first system that measures the seriousness of crime harm to victims.

  • Centre for Analytic Criminology
  • Centre for Community, Gender and Social Justice
  • Centre for Penal Theory and Penal Ethics
  • Jerry Lee Centre for Experimental Criminology
  • Prisons Research Centre
  • Violence Research Centre

Academic courses

The institute offers a number of different courses, including:

  • a nine-month taught M.Phil. Degree in criminology;
  • a twelve-month M.Phil. Degree in criminological research;
  • a two-year M.St Degree in applied criminology, penology and management (Cambridge Penology Programme), which is a postgraduate programme;
  • a two-year M.St Degree in applied criminology and police management (Police Executive Programme), which is a postgraduate programme;
  • a Ph.D. programme in Criminology;
  • various undergraduate courses for Cambridge students in law, psychology, and sociology, including a joint sociology/criminology degree.

Notable people

  • Sir Leon Radzinowicz: the Founder of the Institute of Criminology and the first Wolfson Professor of Criminology.
  • Sir Anthony Bottoms: Emeritus Wolfson Professor of Criminology, Director of the Centre for Penal Theory and Penal Ethics.
  • Ben Crewe: Professor of Penology and Criminal Justice, Prisons Research Centre.
  • Manuel Eisner: Wolfson Professor of Criminology and Professor of Comparative and Developmental Criminology, Director of the Violence Research Centre.
  • David Farrington: Emeritus Professor of Psychological Criminology
  • Loraine Gelsthorpe: Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Director of the institute, Director of the Centre for Community, Gender and Social Justice.
  • Alison Liebling: Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Director of the Prisons Research Centre.
  • Lawrence Sherman: Director of the Cambridge Police Executive Programme.
  • Heather Strang: Director of the Lee Centre of Experimental Criminology.
  • Per-Olof Wikström: Professor of Ecological and Developmental Criminology.