Probation Governance, Identity, and Practice: Making, Unmaking, Remaking - Book Launch
- Date: Thursday 12 February 2026, 1:00 – 2:30
- Location: Liberty Building LT (LG.06)
- Cost: free
This event launches Matt Tidmarsh's recently published monograph, Probation Governance, Identity, and Practice: Making, Unmaking, Remaking (Routledge Press).
Matt Tidmarsh will be joined by Matthew Millings, Professor of Criminal Justice at Liverpool John Moores University; and Hilary Sommerlad, Professor of Law and Social Justice at the University of Leeds.
Dr Matt Tidmarsh (School of Law, University of Leeds) – Matt Tidmarsh is an Associate Professor of Criminal Justice at the School of Law, University of Leeds. His research interests are interdisciplinary, drawing from criminology, sociology, and penology – with a particular focus governance, identity, and practice in probation. Matt is the Co-Director of the Centre for Criminal Justice Studies at the University of Leeds.
Professor Matthew Millings (School of Justice Studies, Liverpool John Moores University) – Matthew Millings is a Professor of Criminal Justice in the School of Justice Studies. As Principal Investigator, Matthew has recently (2021-2025) led a three-year ESRC funded project titled ‘Rehabilitating Probation: Rebuilding culture, identify and legitimacy in a reformed public service’ (Ref ES/W001101/1). The project captured the experiences and consequences of the reunification of probation services in England and Wales in 2021 at local, regional and national levels; and from a range of perspectives, both internal and external to the probation service, see project website here.
Professor Hilary Sommerlad’s research explores the potential for legal professions internationally to promote access to justice. Her other interests are in continuity and change in the profession, particularly in terms of the representation of women and minorities, legal aid and the profession’s work with marginal groups, and the impact of neo-liberalism and the role of the State on the profession internationally. She is the Co-Director of the Legal Professions Research Group at the University of Leeds.