Ursula Smartt JP MA MPhil PGDipLaw
I became a member of the British Society of Criminology in 1992 when I started my prison research and enrolled for the PHD in Social Policy and Criminology at Hull University. From 2002 to 2009 I was firstly Secretary of the London Branch for three years with regular meetings at the LSE and Dr Ben Bowling as Chairman of that branch, followed by being a member of the National Advisory Committee with the office of ‘Media and Public Relations’.
In 2001 I was awarded a Visiting Professorship at the Max Planck Institute, Freiburg, Germany where I undertook comparative research into EU stalking legislation (Germany; UK; Spain and France). I published a number of papers and book chapters jointly with Professor Helmut Kury on aspects of ‘fear of crime’, ‘attitudes to punishment’ and ‘domestic violence’. I have a long and esteemed research track record in international and comparative prison research and have acted as an independent consultant to a number of ministries of justice, such as the HM Prison Service (England/ Wales), the Scottish Prison Service, a number of German ‘Länder’ prison administrations, The Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, France, Spain, Sweden, the Czech Republic, Hungary, the USA, Canada, New South Wales. I also undertook prison inspections at HMP Grand Turk (Turks & Caicos), Tihar Jail (New Delhi, India) and Latvian Prisons. I advise on prisoner labour and prison industries including prisoner pay rates and the industrial manufacturing administration of prisons. ‘Grendon Tales: stories from a therapeutic prison community’ (Waterside Press) – remains a popular book, featuring my two-year research-based at HMP Grendon Underwood where I interviewed some of the most dangerous prisoners in the prison system. I teach law at a number of universities as a visiting lecturer and publish the leading textbook in ‘Media and Entertainment Law’ (Routledge).