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Conference: The intersection of public health & violence prevention

 

Wednesday 4 February 2026, 10 am – 4:30 pm, Leonardo Hotel, Cardiff, CF10 3UD

REGISTRATION NOW OPEN

The UKPRP VISION research consortium and the Violence Prevention team at Public Health Wales are pleased to collaborate on a free, one-day conference, The intersection of public health and violence prevention.

This event will bring together a range of stakeholders working in violence prevention including public health, policing, healthcare, academia, government and the community and voluntary sector. It will showcase professionals from across Wales and beyond who are working at this intersection, with a focus on whole system approaches to violence prevention and the role of public health within this, as well as examining data on violence and its links with health inequalities. Join us for presentations, panel discussions and plenty of opportunities for questions and networking. 

For any questions, please contact VISION_Management_Team@citystgeorges.ac.uk

REGISTRATION NOW OPEN

We look forward to seeing you in Cardiff soon! Violence Prevention Team and VISION Consortium

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COFRESTRU AR AGOR NAWR: Y Croestoriad rhwng Iechyd y Cyhoedd ac Atal Trais

Rydym wrth ein bodd yn eich gwahodd i gynhadledd Croestoriad rhwng Iechyd y Cyhoedd ac Atal Trais, a gynhelir ar y cyd gan Gonsortiwm Trais, Iechyd a Chymdeithas (VISION) Partneriaeth Ymchwil Atal y DU a’r Tîm Atal Trais yn Iechyd Cyhoeddus Cymru.

Pryd: Dydd Mercher 4 Chwefror 2026 10:00am – 4:30pm

Ble: Gwesty Leonardo, Caerdydd, CF10 3UD

COFRESTRWCH YMA

Bydd y gynhadledd undydd, rhad ac am ddim hon yn dwyn ynghyd amrywiaeth o randdeiliaid sy’n gweithio ym maes atal trais gan gynnwys iechyd y cyhoedd, plismona, gofal iechyd, y byd academaidd, y llywodraeth a’r sector cymunedol a gwirfoddol. Bydd yn arddangos gweithwyr proffesiynol o bob cwr o Gymru a thu hwnt sy’n gweithio yn y groesffordd hon, gyda ffocws ar ddulliau system gyfan o atal trais a rôl iechyd y cyhoedd yn hyn, yn ogystal ag archwilio data ar drais a’r cysylltiad rhyngddo ag anghydraddoldebau iechyd.

Ymunwch â ni am gyflwyniadau, trafodaethau panel a digon o gyfleoedd ar gyfer gofyn cwestiynau a rhwydweithio.

Edrychwn ymlaen at eich croesawu ar 4 Chwefror. Anfonwch e-bost at phw.violencepreventionteam@wales.nhs.uk os oes gennych gwestiynau.

COFRESTRWCH YMA

Edrychwn ymlaen at eich gweld yng Nghaerdydd yn fuan! Tîm Atal Trais a Chonsortiwm VISION

Conference programme in English and Welsh to download

Intersection of public health and violence prevention_Programme_E and W

Conference breakout session abstracts in English and Welsh to download

Intersection of public health and violence prevention_Abstracts_E and W

Conference bios of the keynote, chairs and presenters in English and Welsh to download

Intersection of public health and violence prevention_Bios_E and W

Call for Abstracts: The intersection of public health and violence prevention

 

Opportunity to present at
‘The Intersection of Public Health and Violence Prevention’ conference in 2026

The call is now closed.

The VISION research consortium and the Violence Prevention Team at Public Health Wales are pleased to collaborate on a free, one-day conference. The theme is the intersection of public health and violence prevention in February 2026.

Bringing together a range of stakeholders working in violence prevention including public health, policing, healthcare, academia, government and the community and voluntary sector, we are keen to showcase academics and public health professionals from Wales and beyond who are working at this intersection.

We are currently designing the agenda and are looking for additional participation along these themes:

  1. Exploring or addressing the structural determinants of violence through a public health lens, with a focus on research, policy or partnerships
  2. Sharing innovative, evidence-based practice by highlighting approaches, cross-sector collaboration, or lessons learned that can inform practice, policy, or future research in violence prevention
  3. Exploring the role of lived experience in research and ethical considerations.

Presenters will have a maximum of 20 minutes to present, including time for questions or discussion. We welcome interactive presentations or workshops.

Presentation summaries must be a maximum of 300 words and are due by 17 December at 5 pm. Please email Word documents and any questions to PHW.Violencepreventionteam@wales.nhs.uk

Registration will be open soon and announced on this webpage, via networks, and on the VISION LinkedIn page.  For any questions about registration, please contact VISION_Management_Team@citystgeorges.ac.uk

A Scoping Review: Black and Minoritized Women’s Experiences of Specialist Domestic Violence Services in the UK

Domestic violence and abuse (DVA) harms individuals from all backgrounds, yet the experiences and needs of different communities vary significantly. The Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW) estimated that over 1.4 million women and 751,000 men experienced DVA in the year ending March 2023. Black and minoritized women may face heightened vulnerability to DVA due to factors such as socio-economic deprivation, racism, and exposure to specific forms of violence such as so-called honor-based abuse, female genital mutilation or forced marriage.

In addition, minoritized “survivor–victims” of DVA may face intersecting challenges within their socio-political and community context that impede their ability to disclose DVA and may experience social stigma and fears of racism from service providers for example.

This scoping review maps the existing available literature on Black and minoritized women’s experiences with specialist DVA services in the UK to summarize current understanding and identify knowledge gaps.

The research team, comprised of Penelope E. Lowe from University of Roehampton, VISION researchers Sally McManus, Ravi K. Thiara, Estela Capelas Barbosa and Ladan Hashemi, and Pardis Asadi Zeidabadi from City St George’s UoL, and Sumanta Roy of Imkaan and a VISION Advisory Board member, conducted a comprehensive search across multiple databases and gray literature sources. 

Thematic analysis of the findings revealed three main themes: additional service needs, barriers to accessing support, and the pivotal role of “by and for” services. The team concluded that “by and for” services—provided by and for minoritized women—which adopt an intersectional approach are crucial in addressing the unique needs of Black and minoritized “survivor–victims”, particularly in terms of language support, practical assistance, and community-related support. There is a need for more peer-reviewed literature to recognize the role of “by and for” services, using diverse methodologies to support Black and minoritized communities better.

To download the article: Black and Minoritized Women’s Experiences of Specialist Domestic Violence Service in the United Kingdom (UK): A Scoping Review

To cite: Lowe, P. E., McManus, S., Asadi Zeidabadi, P., Thiara, R. K., Roy, S., Capelas Barbosa, E., & Hashemi, L. (2025). Black and Minoritized Women’s Experiences of Specialist Domestic Violence Services in the United Kingdom (UK): A Scoping Review. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 0(0).  https://doi.org/10.1177/15248380251335038

For further information, please contact Penelope at penelope.lowe@rutgers.edu

Illustration from Adobe Photo Stock subscription

Centring otherness with migrant women affected by domestic abuse

Victims-survivors with insecure immigration status in the UK are subject to complexities that limit their access to safety, support, and justice. While campaigners have been advocating for more equitable pathways for provision and support over the years, migrant women continue to navigate hostile environments characterised by dehumanising language and anti-migrant bureaucratic systems.

This chapter, written by VISION researcher Dr Olumide Adisa for the book, Otherness in Communication Research: Perspectives in Media, Interpersonal, and Intercultural Communication, reports on how a feminist dialogic approach (characterised by open, inclusive dialogue and a foundational understanding of social, economic, and political equality for women) was used to centre the often ‘silent voices’ of migrant women affected by domestic abuse.

Feminist dialogical approach acknowledges the complexities that characterise the migrant victim’s journey through the system—the relationship between the self-other, in a peculiar hostile environment which views the other as a ‘threat’. Migrant women continue to endure this othering within agencies as they seek safety and support. For example, some professionals conflating ‘foreignness’ with ‘insecure immigration statuses’, when confronted with difference. This theorisation of self and other lends itself to a social justice-oriented practice.

Using different art forms (co-produced with migrant women) and purposeful conversations, attendees were able to encounter migrant women as not a distant ‘other’ whom ‘we’ observe and theorise but as equal partners in the creating and reshaping on knowledge systems on safety, support, and justice.

This chapter draws on quotes from survivors to funnel through a hopeful lingering over otherness that positions migrant women as deserving of consideration and care, and considers empowering aspects about the other that may often be dismissed in professional circles, but nonetheless are important as a protective element of a safety net.

To download the chapter: Centring Otherness with Migrant Women Affected by Domestic Abuse | SpringerLink

To cite: Adisa, O. (2025). Centring Otherness with Migrant Women Affected by Domestic Abuse. In: Magalhaes, L. (eds) Otherness in Communication Research. Palgrave Studies in Otherness and Communication. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-73788-6_16

For further information, please contact Olumide at olumide.adisa@city.ac.uk

Illustration from Adobe Photo Stock subscription

Mental health service responses to violence: VISION symposia at the European Psychiatric Association

An aim of the VISION programme is to examine the nature and extent of contact that people with experience of violence have with various health and justice services.

Findings on mental health services were presented in a series of symposia at the European Psychiatric Association’s Section on Epidemiology and Social Psychiatry this year.

The first brought together six studies on experiences of violence and adversity and implications for mental health service use. These included King’s College London’s Anjuli Kaul presenting on Sexual Violence in Mental Health Service Users and Sian Oram on Mental Health Treatment Experiences of Minoritised Sexual Violence Survivors, with further contributions from Emma Soneson (Oxford), Maryam Ghasemi (Auckland), and Ladan Hashemi and Sally McManus (both City St George’s).

A second symposium highlighted the value of the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey to violence research, with Sally McManus presenting on Threatening or Obscene Messages from a Partner and Mental Health, Self-harm and Suicidality.

Finally, a third symposium featuring VISION researchers Angus Roberts, Rob Stewart and others and highlighted how natural language processing can be used with information collected in mental health settings. Sharon Sondh (South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust) presented on classifying experiences of violence in mental healthcare records.

The story so far: Co-production in Lambeth

By Elizabeth Cook, Senior Lecturer in Criminology & Sociology at City St George’s, University of London

As the VISION consortium approaches the end of its third year, work continues on consolidating the learning from various large datasets in crime and justice, health, and specialist services.

What we know is that these datasets are structured in different ways, collected by different agencies, and curated for quite different purposes. They represent particular ways of knowing about violence and abuse: they can help to identify patterns (e.g., what determines whether victim-survivors of sexual violence and abuse access support), prevalence (e.g., of workplace bullying and harassment), trends over time, and associations (e.g., between intimate partner violence, suicidality, and self-harm). However, we also know that large datasets struggle to capture the complex, and sometimes messy, realities of violence and abuse experienced by communities, especially those that are marginalised and minoritised.

Peer action research in Lambeth

In Lambeth, working in collaboration with peer researchers has made visible the evidence gaps that emerge at the intersection of multiple systems of inequality, including racism and misogyny.

We are lucky to be partnered with Lambeth Peer Action Collective (LPAC), High Trees and Partisan as part of a peer action research project. The aim of the project is to explore the role that trusted adults and trusted spaces can play in protecting young people from exposure to violence. Currently, there are 11 peer researchers that work as part of the LPAC: a collective of young people and youth organisations campaigning for change in their community. They are supported by High Trees, a Community Development Trust in Tulse Hill, eight partner youth organisations, and Partisan, a Black-led Community Interest Company providing culturally sensitive mental health support.

What has been achieved so far?

The project builds upon research conducted by the previous cohort of LPAC researchers conducted between December 2021 and August 2022. This project identified the impacts of violence on young people in Lambeth and the structural conditions of poverty, housing, education, urban regeneration, and public safety that were experienced unequally across the community.

Developing these findings further, the second cohort of peer researchers have been participating in weekly research training sessions led by High Trees and supported by VISION. The group has been learning everything they need for the next stage: from safeguarding and finances, to developing research questions, critical thinking skills, and how to evaluate research methods. This month, the LPAC researchers are getting ready to put into practice the interview skills that they have been learning each week in preparation for the next stage of the project – recruitment.

There has been amazing progress so far – not only in forming a research question and defining key concepts, but in developing a shared space for researchers to feel like change is possible and to collaborate with others who want the same.

What have we learned?

There are ongoing conversations about how peer action research can work to redress the imbalance between ‘researcher’ and ‘researched.’ These conversations seem even more relevant to research on violence and abuse, where the issue of power is central to both.

So far, the weekly sessions with peer researchers as well as our meetings with High Trees have taught us a lot about how power operates within institutions and the ways that it can be shared if there is a will to share it. This can be reflected in adequate resourcing, decision-making, access, and sharing skills and knowledge. The project has underlined the importance of respect in research: for different forms of expertise, within spaces, and within research relationships. The project has also challenged adult-centric assumptions about what we suppose that young people need to live better lives.

As mentioned previously, this project highlights the evidence gaps that occur at the intersection of multiple inequalities. In doing so, peer action research can also shape how we utilise large datasets, recognising how different social realities are reflected within existing data (or not).

In this sense, this collaboration has also made hyper-visible the question of: what and who is research for? As others have suggested, action research is not so much a methodology, but a way of thinking about research: it is a way of approaching a specific problem through community, participation, and curiosity. It is not necessarily driven by knowing more about something, but by wanting to change something with what you know.

We hope that this research continues in that spirit!

Further information

Do check out the LPAC’s manifesto for change and their previous report!

 Photograph is copyrighted to Lambeth Peer Action Collective and not for use.

Presentations from the 2024 VISION Annual Conference

The presentations from the 3rd VISION annual conference are now available for downloading.

The event was held at Kings College London, Strand campus, on 11 June. The theme was Violence prevention in research and policy: Bridging silos. Keynote speakers, Dr Claudia Garcia-Moreno (World Health Organisation) and Professor Katrin Hohl (City, UoL) considered the changes needed for effective violence prevention from the perspectives of health and justice. Three symposiums highlighted interdisciplinary research from the VISION consortium and partners on:

– Violence against older people: Challenges in research and policy;

– Learning across statutory review practices: Origins, ambitions and future directions; and

– Responding to experiences and expressions of interpersonal violence in the workplace

Approximately 80 academics, central and local government officials, practitioners, and voluntary and community sector organisations attended from a range of health and crime / justice disciplines.

All the slides that could be shared are available below. Please feel free to download.

Photo caption: Symposium 3, ‘Responding to experiences and expressions of interpersonal violence in the workplace’. From left to right: Chair, Dr Olumide Adisa (University of Suffolk) and Panellists Dr Vanessa Gash (City, UoL), Dr Alison Gregory (Alison Gregory Consulting), Catherine Buglass (Employers’ Initiative on Domestic Abuse) and Dr Niels Blom (City, UoL)

Professor Gene Feder, VISION Director – Welcome – 1 download

Welcome_VISION-Annual-Conference-2024Download

Keynote Speaker, Dr Claudia Garcia-Moreno – Violence against women: From research to policy and action – 1 download

Keynote-Speaker-2_Research-to-policy-and-action_2Download

Symposium 1 – Violence against older people: Challenges in research and policy – 4 downloads (Hourglass, Office for National Statistics, Public Health Wales & VISION)

Symposium-1_Older-people-and-violence_HourglassDownload
Symposium-1_Older-people-and-violence_ONSDownload
Symposium-1_Older-people-and-violence_PHWDownload
Symposium-1_Older-people-and-violence_VISIONDownload

Symposium 2 – Learning across statutory review practices: Origins, ambitions and future directions – 1 download

Symposium-2_Statutory-Review-Practice_AllDownload

Symposium 3 – Responding to experiences and expressions of interpersonal violence in the workplace – 3 downloads (Employers’ Initiative on Domestic Abuse, and 2 from VISION)

Symposium-3_Violence-and-the-workplace_VISIONDownload
Symposium-3_Violence-and-the-workplace_EIDADownload
Symposium-3_Violence-and-the-workplace_VISION-2Download

Unleashing social media potential to research violence against women and girls in Iran

Researching violence against women and girls (VAWG) in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) presents unique challenges, primarily due to various contextual factors that hinder conventional survey methodologies. These challenges include limited funding, political obstacles, and safety concerns for both researchers and participants. Consequently, traditional survey approaches may prove unfeasible or inadequate in capturing the complex realities of VAWG in these settings.

VAWG is a particularly pressing issue in Iran, a Middle Eastern country marked by its patriarchal structure and systematic and pervasive gender discrimination. The patriarchal and legal structure of the country perpetuates gender inequalities and reinforces societal norms that tolerate or even condone violence against women. Yet, understanding the full scope of VAWG in Iran remains hindered by a lack of robust data.

In a recently published study, VISION researchers, Ladan Hashemi and Sally McManus, collaborated with counterparts from Bristol University (Nadia Aghtaie) and Iran (Fateme Babakhani) to explore the effectiveness of social media in recruiting victims of violence in Iran, shedding light on their experiences and the potential of social media as a research tool.

The findings revealed valuable insights into the manifestation and context of VAWG in Iran. Social media recruitment proved to be effective in reaching a diverse sample of victims and provided crucial insights into the dynamics of violence, the identities of perpetrators, and the settings where violence occurs. Victims often reported experiences from more than one type of perpetrator, spanning both public and domestic spheres. While social media recruitment offers broad reach and a safer environment for data collection, it also presents challenges such as sampling biases which affect the generalisability of findings.

For further information please see: Social Sciences | Free Full-Text | Using Social Media to Recruit Seldom-Heard Groups: Reaching Women and Girls with Experience of Violence in Iran (mdpi.com)

Or contact Ladan at ladan.hashemi@city.ac.uk  

Photo from licensed Adobe Stock library

Prevalence of physical violence against people in insecure migration status 

VISION researchers from the Systematic Review working group (Andri Innes, Sophie Carlisle, Hannah Manzur, Elizabeth Cook, Jessica Corsi and Natalia Lewis) have published a systematic review and meta-analysis in PLOS One, estimating prevalence of physical violence against people in insecure migration status. This is the first review of its type, synthesizing global data on violence against migrants in all types of insecure status. 

The review finds that around 1 in 3 migrants in insecure status experience physical violence. Violence included physical interpersonal, community and state violence. Insecure status was conceptualised encompassing undocumented status, lapsed statuses, asylum seeking and other pending applications, and any status that embeds a form of insecurity by tying status to a particular relationship (such as spousal or employer-employee). Studies were only included in the review if the violence happened while the victim was in insecure status. 

The VISION team reviewed academic literature published between January 2000 and May 2023, across social and health sciences. The study was global in scope, although data was limited by the English language search.  

Key Findings 

More than one in four migrants in insecure status disclosed intimate partner violence specifically. Spousal visas embed a particular risk of violence because the visa status is connected to an intimate partner relationship, creating an important power disparity. Nevertheless, there was no significant difference in prevalence of violence by gender across the dataset. Prevalence also did not differ meaningfully across geographic region, perpetrator, status type or time frame.  

The most significant findings included that violence exposure is not meaningfully different for people in undocumented status than in other types of insecure status. Physical violence is a concern across all types of insecure migration status types. 

The findings were limited because of high levels of heterogeneity in the data. It was also difficult to consider intersectional identity characteristics such as age, race or ethnicity, nationality, religion, marital status, socio-economic status, education level or motivation for migration because these were not standardised across included studies. This suggests that further and specified research is needed in this area. 

The review is open access and is available to read in full here. 

If you have any comments or feedback for the authors, please contact Andri at alexandria.innes@city.ac.uk  

Photo from licensed Adobe Stock library

VISION/VASC Webinar Series: IPV and the LGBTQI+ communities

This event is in the past.

We are pleased to announce the VISION and Violence & Society Centre (VASC) Webinar Series.

The purpose of the series is to provide a platform for academia, government and the voluntary and community sector that work to reduce and prevent violence to present their work / research to a wider audience. This is a multidisciplinary platform and we welcome speakers from across a variety of fields such as health, crime, policing, ethnicity, migration, sociology, social work, primary care, front line services, etc.

Our first webinar is Tuesday, 20 February 2024, 1300 – 1350. We welcome Dr Steven Maxwell, Research Associate in the School of Social & Environmental Sustainability and Associate in the School of Health and Wellbeing, at the University of Glasgow.

Steven will present his research on intimate partner violence within the LGBTQI+ communities. He is a former mental health nurse and completed his PhD in Global Public Health at University College London in 2021. Steven’s PhD explored HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis uptake/adherence among men who have sex with men who engaged in sexualised drug use. His current interest is researching health inequities/social justices across minority and deprived populations, particularly sexual & mental health, and related substance use.   

To register for the event in order to receive the Teams invitation and / or if interested in presenting at a future Series, please contact: VISION_Management_Team@city.ac.uk

The VISION/VASC Webinar Series is sponsored by the UK Prevention and Research Partnership consortium, Violence, Health and Society (MR-V049879) and the Violence and Society Centre at City, University of London.