On Friday 24 November, the Centre for Research into Violence and Abuse (CRiVA) held a special event with around 60 people in attendance, including the Vice-Chancellor and Warden, at Collingwood College to showcase the breadth of the Centre's work over the last 10 years.
Since launching in 2013, the Centre has provided world-leading research, policy and education with a passion to end violence and abuse. Among the guests were Durham University staff and postgraduate researchers (pictured below) as well as the Domestic Abuse Commissioner for England and Wales, Durham County Council, Durham Police and Crime Commissioners Office and local victim support services.
The highlight of the event was the launch of the Centre's new lived experience advisory group. The aim of the group is to support academics and practitioners who have lived experience of violence and abuse, which is central to CRiVA's work.
Simon Hackett, Co-Founder of CRiVA, said: "Our vision was to develop a world leading Centre which would bring together people from the University interested in work on violence and abuse, but also be a way of building a community of practice with like-minded colleagues working on issues of interpersonal violence in the field."
Professor Karen O'Brien, Vice-Chancellor and Warden, (pictured below) spoke briefly at the event, praising the Centre as a leading research institution. Nicole Jacobs from the Domestic Abuse Commissioner also praised the work of the postgraduate researchers who presented posters during the event to showcase their research.
The event took place prior to the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women on Saturday 25 November which follows the annual 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence campaign led by UN Women.
Nicole Westmarland, Director of CRiVA, said: "In this area of research, having a supportive team around you for the highs and the lows is absolutely vital. I feel really privileged to be able to do what I do for a living and to try to make academia a more accessible place for others by challenging outdated traditions, doing things a bit differently, and by making space for others to do the same."
Learn more about the work of CRiVA over the last 10 years in this video
