Evidence Group Members

The UKCIS Evidence Group provides UKCIS with a timely, critical and rigorous account of the relevant research. It includes representatives from academia, government, NGOs and industry, and meets regularly in order to identify, evaluate and commission new research relevant to child internet safety.

Julia Davidson PhD
(Evidence Group Chair)

Julia Davidson, PhD (LSE) is Professor of Criminology in the School of Business and Law, Department of Criminology at the University of East London and is  Co-Director of the International Centre for Cyber Research, Associate Professor at the Centre for Abuse and Trauma Studies (CATS). She is one of the UK’s foremost experts on policy, practice and offending in the area of cybercrime and online child abuse. She plays an active role in key national committees such as the UK Council for Child Internet Safety (Chairs the Evidence Group) and provides expert advice to international organisations such as UNICEF , Europol, the US Sentencing Commission, the US Department of Justice, the UN ITU, the Home Office and the DCMS.  

She is a member of the Interpol Specialist Crimes against Children Group and is a member of the Europol  EC3 Expert Academic Advisory Group, she has recently joined the UK  Inquiry into institutional child sexual abuse as Chair of the Ethics Committee, she has recently joined the Board of the Hague Justice Portal.  She has directed a considerable amount of national and international research spanning 30 years, recent examples include a European Commission  funded ISEC study spanning 4 EU countries exploring industry and policing practice in the prevention of online child abuse and a study exploring young peoples pathways into hacking undertaken in collaboration with the Europol Cybercrime Centre (EC3).

She is currently directing: A Home Office funded project exploring developing offender CSA and CSE typologies in online and offline contexts; a project for the DCMS on adult online harms to inform the white paper on Internet safety and a project on child online protection policy development in Rwanda in collaboration with 5Rights ( funded by End Violence Against Children). She has also acted as an advisor on child Internet safety  to governments and practitioners in the  MENA region and South America(Suriname) and has aided the Kingdom of Bahrain to develop a national Child Internet Safety policy Framework ( 2010, 2016). J.Davidson@uel.ac.uk> and @juliadavidson13

Sonia Livingstone

Sonia Livingstone DPhil (Oxon), FBA, FBPS, FAcSS, FRSA, OBE is a professor in the Department of Media and Communications at the London School of Economics and Political Science. She has published 20 books on children’s online opportunities and risks, including “The Class: Living and Learning in the Digital Age.” Taking a comparative, critical and contextualised approach, her research examines how the changing conditions of mediation are reshaping everyday practices and possibilities for action.

She researches media audiences, especially children’s and young people’s risks and opportunities, media literacy, and rights in the digital environment. She currently directs the projects “Children’s Data and Privacy Online,” “Global Kids Online” (with UNICEF) and “Parenting for a Digital Future”, and she is Deputy Director of the UKRI-funded “Nurture Network.”

Recipient of many honours, she has advised the UK government, European Commission and Council of Europe, among others, on children’s internet safety and rights in digital environments. Sonia is chair of the LSE’s Truth, Trust and Technology Commission, a former President of the International Communication Association and Executive Board member of the UK Council for Child Internet Safety, and founder of the EC-funded 33 country EU Kids Online research network. She blogs at www.parenting.digitalwww.sonialivingstone.net and @Livingstone_S

Emma Bond

Professor Emma Bond is Director of Research and Head of the Graduate School at the University of Suffolk. She is Professor of Socio-Technical Research and also Director of the Suffolk Institute of Social and Economic Research (SISER). Emma is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and has over 16 years teaching experience on social science undergraduate and post-graduate courses and extensive research experience focusing on online risk and vulnerable groups. Emma’s research interests focus on the everyday interactions between people, society and technology and she is especially interested in developing both innovative and accessible methodologies in research which foster meaningful participation with marginalised groups. She is internationally renowned for her work on online and social media environments and she is currently an invited member of the Scientific Advisory Board for Health Literacy in Childhood and Adolescence (HCLA) Consortium in Germany.

She was the leading expert in the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) publication specification and guidelines for service providers on the provision of information services to young children in close collaboration with Governments and NGO’s; children’s charities, service providers and industry stakeholders in London, Brussels and Nice and she is a member of the Expert Advisory Group for Internet Matters. Her current research interests have a strong focus on qualitative methods, including innovative, creative and virtual methods, and include image based online abuse; technological facilitation in domestic abuse and revenge pornography. Her recent research includes the Catalyst funded Digital Civility of University Students for the Office for Students; a study on the vulnerability of primary school ages children online; an investigation into the awareness of Child Helplines in 5 European countries; an evaluation of the Revenge Porn Helpline and an evaluation of the Click: Path to Protection training for the Marie Collins Foundation.

Emma has also completed an extensive research project for the Better Policing Collaborative and the College of Policing on a review of domestic violence and abuse for 5 police forces in the UK as part of a project with the Police Knowledge Fund which included police force knowledge of Revenge Pornography legislation and the role of everyday technologies in cases domestic abuse. Her research on virtual environments, mobile technologies and risk has attracted much national and international acclaim and she has been interviewed for BBC Breakfast; ITV; The Today Programme on Radio 4; Woman’s Hour on Radio 4; Channel 4s Sex Education Show and for various national media channels in the UK, America and Canada. 

John Brown

Jon is a qualified Social Worker with a Masters in Social Policy from the LSE. During his career as a Probation Officer and Social Worker he has been responsible for setting up and managing a range of sexual abuse services ranging from therapeutic services for child victims, services for children and young people with sexually harmful behaviour and services for adult sex offenders. Between 2003-07 Jon was Chair of NOTA, the National Organisation for the Treatment of Abusers (www.nota.co.uk) and remains on the National Executive Committee.

He is also a Trustee of the Loudoun Trust which exists to promote evidence based research and practice in the field of sexual aggression against children, he is a Board member of eNACSO (European NGO Alliance for Child Safety Online  www.enacso.eu) he is a peer reviewer for the Economic and Social Research Council (www.esrc.ac.uk) and a panel member for the Office for the Children’s Commissioner’s Inquiry into to Child Sexual Abuse in the Family Environment. 

Prior to taking up this role with the NSPCC Jon was Operational Director of Children’s Services with Action for Children. Since April 2010 he has been in post as Head of Strategy and Development with the NSPCC helping to take forward the new organisational strategy in relation to sexual abuse. Jon is responsible for the design and commissioning of service, policy and research development. In January 2012 he also took responsibility for leading the NSPCCs work with disabled children. @JonBrown46

Jo Bryce

Director of Research, Cyberspace Research Unit (CRU), School of Psychology, University of Central Lancashire. Jo manages the CRU which provides training and conducts research on young peoples’ online behaviour, risk exposure and vulnerability. Jo is the editor of the Research Highlights Series of the UKCCIS Evidence Group.

Karl Hopwood

Karl Hopwood is an independent esafety expert. He is a member of UKCCIS (UK Council for Child Internet Safety) and sits on the advisory board for the UK Safer Internet Centre and the education advisory board for CEOP. Karl has worked for a number of key players in the UK and abroad including CEOP (Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre), BECTA (British Educational and Communications Technology Agency), the European Commission and several Local Authorities within the UK.

As an ex primary headteacher, he continues to work closely with children, young people, parents and teachers to develop safer online behaviours and the promotion of digital literacy. Karl has been employed for the last 7 years as an in-house consultant for INSAFE which is the coordinating node of the EU safer internet programme where he is responsible for the coordination of safer internet helplines across the EU. He has also worked extensively with the BSA and IAPS to promote esafety in their schools and is a trustee of the Marie Collins Foundation and for Childnet International. karl@esafetyltd.co.uk

Emily Keany

Emily Keaney is Head of Children’s Research at Ofcom, overseeing a wide-reaching programme of qualitative and quantitative research into children’s media use, attitudes and understanding. Emily has combined research and policy analysis in previous roles with the Communications Consumer Panel, The Arts Council and the Institute for Public Policy Research.

Dr Daria Kuss

Dr Daria Kuss is a Chartered Psychologist, Chartered Scientist and Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Nottingham Trent University, UK and Programme Leader of the new MSc Cyberpsychology. She has published prolifically in peer-reviewed journals and books, and her publications include over 60 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters, three authored books, and over 40 international conference presentations, including many keynote talks. She has an international reputation as Internet addiction expert. She engages in consultancy related to excessive and addictive media and technology use and has delivered workshops on Internet and social media addiction across the world, and has been involved in a theatre play on smartphone addiction.

She is currently a guest editor of Addictive Behaviors and the Journal of Addiction Research and Therapy, editorial board member of Psychopathology, Frontiers in Psychology and JMIR Serious Games. Moreover, Daria is a member of various international and national professional bodies, including Chartered Psychologist at the British Psychological Society, a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, member of the European Psychiatric Association, the Hellenic Association for the Study of Internet Addiction Disorder, the International Consortium of Mobile Phone Behavior, the International Communication Association, and the International Association of Applied Psychology.

In 2016, Daria has been found to be among the Top 10 publishing academics at Nottingham Trent University, and has won the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health Best Paper Award 2015 for her research on online social networking. @Dr_Kuss and daria.kuss@ntu.ac.uk

Dr Elena Martellozzo

Dr Elena Martellozzo is an expert on sex offenders’ use of the internet and online child safety.  Dr Martellozzo has worked extensively with children, serious offenders and practitioners. She has conducted research for the Internet Watch Foundation (2017), the London Metropolitan Police (2011), the Kingdom of Bahrain (2010), the National Audit Office and the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (2009). She co-led (with Dr Horvath) a piece of research commission by the NSPCC, BBFC and OCC exploring the way in which pornography impacts on the values, attitudes, beliefs and behaviour of children and young people (2016).

She is currently co-leading with Prof Julia Davidson a study on sex offending against children funded by the Centre of Expertise for Child Sexual Abuse. Her work includes the analysis of online pornography, online grooming, distribution of indecent images and police practice in this area.  She has also assessed police safety campaigns about the use of the web aimed at children and has worked with children on their perception of the internet and looked at their safety when using it.

The findings of her research on this subject are helping to inform police and other key agencies’ strategies and practice. She has published work on protecting children on the net, the risk, control and state surveillance of internet sex offenders and how sex offenders use the internet. She has presented her findings internationally and provides regular media expert advice. For more information about Dr Martellozzo please read here. e.martellozzo@mdx.ac.uk

David Miles

Dave Miles is currently Director of Policy and Partnerships at Parent Zone. Parent Zone are experts in digital family life. They provide support and information to parents, children and schools, working globally to help families to navigate the internet safely and confidently. Its clients include Google, Telenor, Vodafone, Unilever and the UK Home Office.
Dave is currently co-chair of the UK Council for Internet Safety (UKCIS) Digital Resilience Working Group. He is also an active member of the UKCIS Evidence Working Group.

He is a member of the Expert Panel for UNICEF’s Global Fund to End Violence Against Children. As part of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), this multi-donor trust fund supports those working to prevent and respond to violence and make societies safe for the world’s children. Dave is a former Policy Director for the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC), an independent, non-governmental body, which has classified cinema films since it was set up in 1912 and videos/DVDs since the Video Recordings Act was passed in 1984. He has held executive leadership roles at Motorola, Compaq and IBM.

He is a Freeman of the City of London and a member of the Worshipful Company of Information Technologists (WCIT), one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. The Company received its Royal Charter in 2010.

Andrea Millwood Hargrave

An independent advisor on media regulatory policy and research, working across the communications field, Andrea’s interest in developments in the communications industry is evident from her experience, both regulatory and business-facing, within the technology, media and telecommunications sectors. 

An Associate of the Programme in Comparative Media Law and Policy, Centre for Socio-Legal Studies, University of Oxford, Andrea is Director General of the International Institute of Communications (IIC) and convener of the IIC’s International Regulators Forum.

She has published widely on media policy in an international context and has a keen interest in communications literacy and acts as an Expert in for both the European Union and the Council of Europe, as well as working in an advisory capacity for international organisations. andrea.millwoodhargrave@ntlworld.com

Abhilash Nair

Abhilash Nair is Senior Lecturer in Internet Law at Aston University, Birmingham. He is a world-leading expert on online child safety laws, and has advised various international and national bodies on regulating illegal content on the internet, online child sexual abuse material, internet pornography, and content-related cybercrime. He has published widely on aspects of internet law and regulation, and has been a regular speaker at international conferences and seminars. Abhilash’s recent research monograph titled ‘The Regulation of Internet Pornography: Issues and Challenges’ (Routledge) examines how the internet has necessitated a fundamental change in the regulation of pornography. 

Abhilash is the Editor in Chief of the European Journal of Law and Technology, one of the oldest open access law journals in Europe (formerly published as JILT). In addition, he serves as the Deputy Editor of the International Review of Law, Computers and Technology (Routledge), and an Associate Editor of the European Journal of Current Legal Issues. Abhilash is Secretary of the British and Irish Law, Education and Technology Association and has served as a member of the Technology Law and Practice Committee of the Law Society of Scotland. Abhilash is a member of the Evidence Working Group of the UK Council for Internet Safety (UKCIS).

Tink Palmer

CEO, The Marie Collins Foundation. Tink is an experienced clinical and forensic practitioner, manager, trainer, policy maker and strategist. She has written numerous articles and reports on the recovery needs of children harmed via the internet and mobile technologies. tinkpalmer@mariecollinsfoundation.org.uk

Kathryn Tremlett

Kathryn Tremlett manages the UK’s Report Harmful Content project which provides a mediatory service to members of the public who are dealing with harmful content online. She also works as a practitioner on the Professionals Online Safety Helpline which forms part of the Safer Internet Centre in the UK. On a day to day basis her work involves providing holistic advice and support to professionals working with young people seeking help with online issues.

Kathryn contributes to and helps create resources in the field of Online Safety, including updating the UK Safer Internet Centre’s most popular resources: The Social Media Checklists. When not answering calls she can be found responding to local and national media requests which involve live radio and television broadcasts, writing articles for in-house and external media publications and providing support to the wider UK Safer Internet Centre team.

Stephen Webster

Stephen Webster (CPsychol AFBPsS) is a research psychologist at NatCen Social Research.  He has been conducting research into offline and online sexual offending for 16 years and has published extensively in the area.  His recent work includes a book on online offending behaviour and child victimisation (Webster, Davidson, Bifulco, 2014);  an EC evaluation of the Stop it Now! prevention helpline (Webster, McNaughton Nicholls, Brown, Kerr, Jago et al, 2014) and the European Online Grooming Project (Webster, Davidson, Bifulco, Gottschalk, Caretti, Pham et al, 2012).

He is a peer reviewer for the Journal of Sexual Aggression, Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment and the ESRC.  Stephen is also a member of the Risk Management Authority Research Advisory Board.

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