Institute of Applied Social Research

 The Institute of Applied Social Research (IASR) is home to three research centres – The Tilda Goldberg Centre for Social Work and Social Care (TGC), the International Centre: Researching child sexual exploitation and trafficking (IC) and the Vauxhall Centre for the Study of Crime (VC) – and three interdisciplinary research groups which focus on forced migration, substance misuse and ageing and building resilience and wellbeing in the helping professions. In the Research Excellence Framework (REF2014) 78% or our research was assessed to be world-leading or internationally excellent.

We are recognised for our knowledge and expertise in the following areas:
• Undertaking applied research and evaluation, to inform policy and practice and the delivery of social care and multi-disciplinary services
• Engaging Participant Expert by Experience Researchers in the design and conduct of studies
• Evaluating strengths-based practice to improve social work practice (e.g. motivational interviewing and systemic practice)
• Safeguarding children and young people from child sexual exploitation and other forms of abuse
• Contextual safeguarding
• Research with children looked after and young people negotiating the transition from care to adulthood
• Empirical studies of youth crime and victimisation, policing, the operation of the youth justice and community safety services
• Establishing new ways of understanding the complexities of migration and trafficking
• Understanding the extent of alcohol-related harm and exploring what alcohol treatment approaches work best with older people who misuse alcohol.