Professor Emma Williams
Professor Emma WilliamsDirector – Centre of Excellence for Equity in Uniformed Public Services & Professor in Applied Research in Uniformed Public Services
Emma joined the Centre of Excellence for Equity in Uniformed Public Services at Anglia Ruskin University in 2024. Prior to joining ARU, Emma was the Academic Director of the Centre for Policing Research and Learning (CPRL) at the Open University.Emma’s career as a policing academic started as a principal researcher at the Metropolitan Police Service where she undertook applied, operational, and strategic research on several policing related issues such as rape and serious sexual offending, trust and confidence in policing and neighborhood policing. Emma completed a two-year secondment with the Ministry of Justice and following that joined Canterbury Christ Church University as a senior lecturer where she was responsible for the design and delivery of a successful MSc programme for serving police officers. She was made principal lecturer in 2016 and in 2017 developed the Canterbury Centre of Police Research which she directed until she left to become the Research Director at CPRL in 2021.Emma was awarded a PhD from London Southbank University in 2018 for a thesis that explored police officer perspectives on the challenges to reform focused on improving the police investigation of rape.From 2021 whilst at CPRL Emma led one of the research pillars for Operation Soteria (Home Office funded project) exploring the investigation of rape and serious sexual offending. Emma and her team led the work on officer wellbeing, learning and development which has culminated in the specialist course for officers who investigate rape being redesigned and piloted in collaboration with the College of Policing. Emma’s work is influenced by policing scholarship, justice theory, organizational theories, criminology, and sociology. Emma is also committed to knowledge mobilization and Impact.

Research Interests

  • Organizational legitimacy
  • Violence against Women and Girls
  • Collaboration and research co-design
  • Organizational and procedural justice

Qualifications

  • Doctor of Philosophy in social sciences, London Southbank University (2018)
  • MA Criminal Justice, Brunel University (1998)
  • BSc (Hons) Criminology and Psychology, Brunel University (1997)

Memberships and Boards

  • British Society of Criminology
  • Executive Board of the Society of Evidence Based Policing
  • Academic representative on the College of Policing Governance Board
  • Academic reference group member for the National Police Federation
  • Academic reference group member for HMICFRS

Some Recent Grants

2025-2027 (Principal-Investigator) UKRI Secondary Data Analysis Funding Secondary Analysis of Operation Soteria Data: Officer learning, development and wellbeing [grant value, (£): 212,000]

2024-2025 (Principal -Investigator) Home Office Evaluation of the Serious Sexual Assault Investigator Development Programme [grant value, (£): 200,000] to review the impact of the new learning programme for officers who investigate rape and sexual offending through a quasi-experimental approach.

Jan 2025-April 2025 (Principal-Investigator) Avon and Somerset Police Operation Bright Light: Applying the methodology of Operation Soteria to explore the learning and development and wellbeing of officers who respond to and investigate domestic abuse. [grant value, (£): 50,000]

2021-2024 (Principal-Investigator) Home Office Operation Soteria – Officer learning and development and wellbeing [grant value, (£): 2.6 million]

2021-2023 (Principal-Investigator) Durham Constabulary Uplift Progamme. Extending the evidence base on tutor constables / assessment of new officers and the impact of younger in service/age officers [grant value, (£): 230,000]

Publications

Williams, E., Norman, J and Barrow Grint, K. (forthcoming) ‘Policing Vulnerability: Attrition, rape and domestic abuse’ in Pepper, I. and McGrath, R. (eds) Introduction to Professional Policing Second Edition: Examining the Evidence Base Routledge: London

Fenton-O’Creevy, M., Bowles, B., Maguire, L. and Williams, E. (2024) ‘Uncomfortable knowledge, the production of ignorance, and the trustworthiness of UK policing’, Policing: a journal of policy and practice, 18. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1093/police/paae117.

Sondhi, A., Harding, R. and Williams, E. (2024) ‘Segmenting the Rape and Serious Sexual Offence (RASSO) investigator workforce: implications for wellbeing and burnout’, Police practice & research, pp. 1–13. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/15614263.2024.2426172.

Harding, R. Maguire, L. and Williams, E. (2024) “Competing concepts of public value and legitimacy in the police: Organizational challenges in the investigation of rape and serious sexual offences,” International Journal of Law, Crime and Justice, vol 76 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijlcj.2023.100646.

Stevens, A. Hendrie, N. Bacon, M. Parrott, S. Monaghan, M. Williams, Emma. Lewer, D., Moore, A. Berlin, J., Cunliffe, J. Quinton, P. (2023) “Evaluating police drug diversion in England: protocol for a realist evaluation,” Health & justice, vol 11(1):46–49

Sondhi, A. Harding, R. Maguire, L. Williams, E. (2023) ‘Understanding Factors Associated with Burnout Symptoms amongst Investigators working on Rape and Serious Sexual Offence (RASSO) investigations in England and Wales’, Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice, vol. 17 https://doi.org/10.1093/police/paad020

Sondhi, A. Williams, E. (2023) ‘A systematic mapping of public health primary prevention interventions with relevance for policing’. International Journal of Police Science & Management, vol. 25(2): 148-156

Williams, E. Norman, J. Ward, R. Harding, R. (2022) ‘Linking Professionalism, Learning and Wellbeing in the Context of Rape Investigation: Early Findings from Project Bluestone’. International Criminology, vol. 2(3): 262-275

Foley, J. Hassett, A. and Williams, E. (2024) “‘It’s why you get up in the morning’ . A Straussian grounded theory study of coping in police officers who investigate rape and child abuse,” Police journal (Chichester) [Preprint]. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/0032258X241228491.

Foley, J. Hassett, A. and Williams, E. et al. (2023) “‘Holding onto trauma?’ The prevalence and predictors of PTSD, anxiety and depression in police officers working with child abuse, rape and sexual exploitation victims,” Police journal (Chichester) [Preprint]. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/0032258X231183638.

Foley, J. Hassett, A. and Williams, E. (2022) ‘“Getting on with the job”: A systematised literature review of secondary trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in policing within the United Kingdom (UK)’, Police journal (Chichester), vol.95 (1): 224-252

Williams, E. Sondhi, A. (2022) A Narrative Review of the Literature on the Recruitment of Younger Police Officers in Age and in Service: What Are the Implications for the Police in England and Wales? Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice, vol.16 (4): 648-662

Charman, S. Williams, E. (2021) Accessing justice: The impact of discretion, ‘deservedness’ and distributive justice on the equitable allocation of policing resources. Criminology & Criminal Justice. vol.22 (3), p.404-422

Williams, E. Norman, J. and Boag-Munroe, F. (2021) ‘Direct Entry: Fairness, resilience and the impact on regular cops’ International Journal of Law and Criminal Justice. Vol.64: 100-121

Williams, E. Norman, J. and Rowe, M. (2019) ‘The Police Education Qualification Framework: A Professional Agenda or Building Professionals?’ Police Practice and Research: An International Journal vol.20 (3): 259-272

Williams, E. Norman, J. and Sondhi, A. (2019) ‘Understanding Risks: Practitioner’s Perceptions of the Lottery of Mental Healthcare Available for Detainees in Custody’, Policing: a journal of policy and practice, vol 13(4): 441–454.

Scott, S. and Williams, E. (2019) ‘Change to Police Leadership: The legitimisation and the challenges of direct entry’ in Ramshaw, P., Silvestri, M. and Simpson, M. (eds) Police Leadership. Changing Landscapes London: Palgrave (50 per cent contribution)

Williams, E. and Cockcroft, T. (2019) ‘Knowledge wars, organizational justice and competing knowledge paradigms in British policing’ in Mitchell, R. and Huey, L. (eds) Evidence Based Policing Chicago: Policy Press

Williams, E. Norman, J. and Nixon, K. (2018) Violence against Women: Public health or law enforcement problem or both? International Journal of Police Science and Management vol.20 (3): 196-206

Sondhi, A. Williams, E. (2018) ‘Patient perspectives of being detained under section 136 of the Mental Health Act: Findings from a qualitative study in London’, Medicine, science, and the law, 58(3): 159–167

Hesketh, I. Williams, E. (2017) “A New Canteen Culture: The Potential to Use Social Media as Evidence in Policing,” Policing : a journal of policy and practice, vol 11(3): 346–355

Horvath, M.A.H. Tong, S. & Williams, E. (2011). Critical issues in rape investigation: an overview of reform in England and Wales. The Journal of Criminal Justice Research, 1(2), available from http://www.icjrc.org/jcjr_research_papers

Recent presentations & conferences

Williams, E. (2024) Policing and wellbeing amongst officers who investigate sexual offences. London City Forum event

Williams, E. (2024) ‘The Achievement of Credibility in Rape Investigations: Confirming old norms’ Canterbury Centre for Policing Research Policing Futures conference – The Policy Press ‘best paper of conference’ award – voted for by attendees

Williams, E. (2023) ‘Enabling Change: The move from tokenistic to specialist learning for officers who investigate rape and sexual offences’ – European Society of Criminology Conference

Williams, E. (2023) ‘Organizational Responsibility: Enabling from the inside’ – Law Enforcement and Public Health Conference (Sweden)

Williams, E. (2023) ‘Vulnerability and Learning’ – Vulnerability Knowledge and Police Practice Conference

Zara Quigg