Welcome to Imagining Possible Futures
Our ambitious plan is to undertake the first large scale, participatory study of lived experience-led criminal justice across the five countries of the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Former prisoners and criminalised people take active roles as researchers, lecturers and trainers, practitioners (peer supporters, prison council and equality representatives, co-producers and leaders of services), policy and practice advisors, and (academic) authors advancing criminological theory. Despite growing forms of participation in criminal justice internationally, there is a need for a fuller evidence base.
The project has 3 core aims
To document a history lived experience-led criminal justice.
To critically examine current models of participation, coproduction and lived experience-informed criminal justice practice.
To use artistic and speculative design practices to explore future possibilities for participatory criminal justice.
If you are interested in being a participant in the research or collaborating on a project, get in touch, Gill Buck g.buck@chester.ac.uk
Meet the Team
Publications
Explore our list of publications for valuable insights and information
Free Resources
View and download our range of free resources
Photo & Artefact Gallery
View our galleries
News & Events
- Paula Harriott nominated for national radio award
Visiting researcher Paula Harriott has been shortlisted for the Broadcasting Press Guild (BPG) Audio Awards. In contention for Best Radio Presenter are Sara Cox (Drive-Time Show, BBC Radio 2), Paula Harriott (The Secret Life of Prisons, Prison Radio Association), Ellen E Jones (Screenshot, BBC Radio 4), Jenny Kleeman (The GiS, BBC Radio 4), Kate Molleson (Composer of the Week, BBC Radio 3; live BBC Radio… Read more: Paula Harriott nominated for national radio award - Correctional Research Symposium 2025
Dr Gill Buck will give a keynote address at the Correctional Research Symposium, 13-15 May 2025 focused on Peer Mentoring in Criminal Justice. - Is Prison the Answer for Women?
Prison for women tab: Dr Gill Buck will join a panel as part of Storyhouse Women on 10 May 2025. Gill will draw on (collaborative) pilot studies with formerly imprisoned women to centre women’s agency, voices and creative potential.