Dr Coretta Phillips OLD M2.27

This course is compulsory on the MSc in Criminal Justice Policy. This course is available with permission as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit.

This course is available for students on other MSc programmes in the Department of Social Policy where regulations permit and some places are available for the Master of Laws and Master of Laws (extended part-time study)  This course will be capped at 30 students, with preference given first to students on MSc programmes in Social Policy, then the LLM. If spaces are still available, students from other MSc programmes will be selected on a first come first served basis.

Some prior knowledge of law or sociology is useful, but not essential.

The course provides a detailed and critical introduction to the study of criminal justice institutions, practices and participants. It begins with an introduction to the nature of crime and contemporary criminal justice policy. It then examines the main elements of modern criminal justice systems (police, courts, prisons, probation, the media, and private security). Special emphasis is given to current issues such as restorative justice and increasing rates of incarceration. The course combines up-to-date empirical work with theoretical perspectives and also emphasises the role of historical and comparative perspectives in understanding current trends.

Lectures: SA403.1 19 weekly one and a half hour lectures, MT and, LT.

Seminars: SA403.2, 18 weekly one and a half hour seminars, MT and LT and a revision session in ST.

All students are expected to submit two non-assessed essays.

There are two set texts for the course: M Maguire, R Morgan & R Reiner (eds.) (2012), The Oxford Handbook of Criminology, 5th edn; and T Newburn (2012), Criminology.

Exam (100%, duration: 3 hours) in the main exam period.