Dr Paul Nelson

Paul joined the criminology team at ARU as a Lecturer in Criminology and Policing in 2021, following a career in children’s services. As a child protection practitioner, Paul has proven knowledge and experience in child protection having supported children and young people who are at risk of significant harm or of being criminally exploited.

Visit the ARU in the Community: A Trusted Adult Scheme webpage

[email protected]

Background

Paul has completed his MA in International Slavery Studies and a PhD in Criminology, which was the first research in England and Wales to examine child protection practitioners' understanding of Child Sex Trafficking and the National Referral Mechanism.

He is currently working with colleagues at the International Policing and Public Protection Research Institute (IPPPRI), examining attitudes and victim blaming towards victims of Child Sexual Exploitation and Child Sex Trafficking. This research hopes to shed light on the subterranean bias, reflexive practice and victim blaming that exists within the child protection profession to effect change.

Paul is involved in numerous social enterprises such as the Trusted Adult Scheme. This brings together a team of youth support workers, the network of child protection practitioners, academics and trained adults to work together to advance our understanding of the needs of children and young people. This is in partnership with Cambridgeshire County Council and strengthens ARU’s links to its local communities.

It also champions ARU as a community asset to enable future partnerships and support the professional development and capacity of the voluntary youth sector with a focussed civic mission, which ARU are committed to working on with others through education, research and knowledge exchange to enhance the economic, cultural and social wellbeing of the communities in which we work and live.

Paul is also very keen to support work readiness and increase social mobility in children and young people via social enterprise to develop experience and practice understanding for students studying degrees that lead to careers in services for children and young people, especially for those studying career pathways linked to statutory children and young people’s services and within the third sector.

Paul has developed a strong professional working relationship with the National County Lines Coordination Centre (NCLCC), who are working with Paul and colleagues on research focused on illegal/unregistered children’s homes. Paul has also established a national working group on this subject with the NCLCC, which meets regularly to advance our knowledge of this sector, strengthen multi-agency understanding, and help drive policy and practice change.

Paul teaches on a variety of modules across the criminology programme.

Research interests

• Modern Slavery
• Child Sex Trafficking
• Child Exploitation
• Child Abuse
• Sexual Violence
• Social Policy
• Social Enterprise
• Subterranean Bias
• Reflexive Practice
• Youth Work
• Illegal/unregistered Children's Homes

Areas of research supervision

• Modern Slavery
• Child Sex Trafficking
• Child Exploitation
• Child Abuse
• Social Policy
• Child Protection
• Subterranean bias
• Reflexive practice
• Youth Work
• Illegal/unregistered Children's Homes

Teaching

• The Evolution of Crime and Criminology
• Criminology and Policy and Practice
• Introduction to Youth Work and Safeguarding
• Undergraduate Major Project
• Postgraduate Major Project

Qualifications

• Fellowship (FHEA)
• PhD in Criminology
• MA in International Slavery Studies
• BA in History and Politics

Memberships, editorial boards

• British Society of Criminology
• European Society of Criminology
• American Society of Criminology

Research grants, consultancy, knowledge exchange

• 2025/26 Serious Violence Duty Funding, Police and Crime Commissioner
• 2026 Serious Violence Duty Funding, Integrated Care Board ICB) NHS
• 2025 Home Office Funding, National County Line Coordinator Centre (NCLCC)
• 2025 Home Office Funding, National County Line Coordinator Centre (NCLCC)
• 2025: Essex Police Funding
• 2024 Access and Participation Fund
• 2023/24 Serious Violence Duty Funding, Police and Crime Commissioner
• 2023 Access and Participation Fund
• 2024 Participatory Research Fund Recipient, Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement
• 2023 ARU Temps Internship Recipient, ARU Temps
• 2023 Social Innovation Fund Recipient, Anglia Ruskin
• 2023 Participatory Research Fund Recipient, Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement
• 2023 Police Commissioners Youth Fund Recipient, Police and Crime Commissioner
• 2023 Communities Service Strategy and Partnerships Recipient, Cambridgeshire County Council
• 2023 AHSS Faculty Research and Innovation Funding Recipient, Anglia Ruskin
• 2023 Impact project Funding Recipient, Anglia Ruskin
• 2022 Impact project Funding Recipient, Anglia Ruskin
• 2022 Innovation and Cultivate: Funding Recipient, Cambridgeshire County Council
• 2022 AHSS Faculty Research and Innovation Funding Recipient, Anglia Ruskin

Recent presentations and conferences

Nelson, J. P., 2026., Exploitation Uncovered: Voices from the Unregistered Children’s Homes and CCE Presented at the Metropolitan Police (MET) Conference, London, UK

Nelson, J. P., 2026., Exploitation Uncovered: Voices from the Unregistered Children’s Homes and CCE Presented at the Hendon Police Training Centre, London, UK

Nelson, J. P., 2026., Exploitation Uncovered: Voices from the Unregistered Children’s Homes and CCE Presented at NCLCC/ARU joint conference, ARU, Cambridge, UK

Nelson, J. P., 2026., Exploitation Uncovered: Voices from the Unregistered Children’s Homes and CCE Presented at an Online event for National Exploitation Day for the MET

Nelson, J. P., 2025., Exploitation Uncovered: Voices from the Unregistered Children’s Homes and CCE Presented at the European Society of Criminology Annual Conference, Athens, Greece

Nelson, J. P., 2024. A Multifaceted Academic Framework - Youth Violence Reduction via Civic Enterprise: ARU in the Community, A Trusted Adult Scheme (TAS) Presented at the American Society of Criminology Annual Conference, San Francisco, USA

Nelson, J. P., 2023. The Child Protection Paradox Model: Child Sex Trafficking in England and Wales Presented at the American Society of Criminology Annual Conference, Philadelphia, USA

Nelson, J. P., 2023. Child Sex Trafficking in England and Wales: The Need to Close the Gaps. Presented at the European Society of Criminology Annual Conference, Florence, Spain

Nelson, J. P., 2023. Child Sex Trafficking in England and Wales: Child Protection Responses. Presented at the Making Research Count Conference, University of Bedfordshire, UK

Nelson, J. P., 2023. Exploring the benefits of Social Enterprise. Presented at the Catania University, Sicily

Nelson, J. P., 2023. Exploring the benefits of Social Enterprise: How to improve the life of Children and Young People in England and Wales. Presented at the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Safeguarding Conference, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, UK

Nelson, J. P., 2023. Child Sex Trafficking in England and Wales: Child Protection Responses. Presented at the University of Liverpool, UK

Nelson, J. P., 2022. Child Sex Trafficking in England and Wales. Presented at the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Safeguarding Conference, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, UK

Nelson, J. P., 2022. Child Sex Trafficking in England and Wales: The Need to Close the Gaps. Presented at the European Society of Criminology Annual Conference, Malaga, Spain

Nelson, J. P., 2022. Exploring the benefits of Social Enterprise: How to improve the life of Children and Young People in England and Wales. Presented at the Cambridge International Symposium on Economic Crime, University of Cambridge, UK

Nelson, J. P., 2021. Child Sex Trafficking in England and Wales: The Need to Close the Gaps in knowledge. Presented at the European Society of Criminology Annual Conference

Nelson, J. P., 2020. Child Sex Trafficking in England and Wales: The Child Protection Paradox Model. Presented at the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Safeguarding Conference, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, UK