Dr Rachel Stuart
Senior Lecturer in Criminology and Deviance

Summary

I am a critical criminologist who specialises in the research of marginalised communities. My PhD thesis examined the experiences of adult content webcam performers as they negotiated the corporate-owned hosting sites from which they broadcast. Whilst researching for my PhD I was also employed by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) on an NHIR-funded project that examined the impact of policing on the health of sex workers in East London. During the COVID-19 lockdown, I was employed as a PI on a research project funded by the Doctors of The World that examined the health needs of street-level sex workers in Newham. Our findings recently influenced a change of policy that includes a health-informed approach towards street-level sex work in the borough

As someone of Gypsy/Traveller heritage, I have recently been involved in research that looked at the uptake of COVID prevention measures among members of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities. The research funded by the DHSC, a collaboration with colleagues at LSHTM, revealed increased marginalisation and high levels of systemic violence against community members during the COVID period. At the same time, I worked with colleagues at Brunel to investigate the impact of digital exclusion in the context of Margate; the research focussed on the impacts of a lack of connectivity on Roma and the arts community in the town. 

I am part of the growing criminology department and have helped develop the curriculum for the newly launched Criminology BSC. Along with my colleagues, we have sought to develop a degree that reflects the needs of the diverse cohort that our cutting-edge programme has attracted. I am the module convenor of Crime Media and Society, Intersectional Criminology and the forthcoming Capitalism and Sex module.

Qualifications

PhD. Criminology .The University of Kent (2021)

LLM Criminal Justice and Human Rights .The University of Kent 

BA (Hons.) Criminology and Cultural Studies. The University of Kent

Responsibility

Lecturer in Criminology and Deviance.

Admissions Tutor for Criminology.

Co-ordinator of SPS Decolonising Coalition.

SPS  Co -Director of Equality and Diversity 

Board Member of Brunel Research Ethics Committee