For over a decade, the Contextual Safeguarding Programme at Durham University (previously at the University of Bedfordshire) has been at the forefront of reforming safeguarding systems, to promote the welfare of young people in places where they spend their time. The Contextual Safeguarding Programme is part of Durham's Sociology Department whose members, postgraduate researchers, and students collectively develop 'sociological imagination' and apply it to contemporary processes and issues. These include social inequality and its implications for social mobility, education and health; violence, abuse, and the role of help-seeking and state responses. The Department was ranked 1st for Criminology in the Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2024 and ranked 4th for impact in REF 2021.

To assist in this process, the Department of Sociology at Durham University seeks to appoint three talented individual to the role of Associate Professor - each on a 0.5 FTE basis. Each postholder will hold leadership responsibility for one of the three GCCS Workstreams, in collaboration with either Law, Business or Education departments. One of the Associate Professors (Sociology) will lead on the development of the research strategy and associated workstream, one on the implementation strategy and associated workstream, and the third will hold Deputy Director responsibility for the GCCS, including leading on the GCCS dissemination strategy. All three roles, regardless of their leadership responsibility, will play an active role in the development and management of research projects within the GCCS, representing the GCCS via external engagements and citizenship roles, contributing to postgraduate and CPD learning opportunities that will contribute to the GCCS sustainability plan, and mentoring/supervising centre staff.

We welcome applications from those with research and teaching interests in the field of Contextual Safeguarding specifically, as applied to social work, voluntary sector or education settings; and are particularly eager to hear from applicants with public-facing reputations associated to Contextual Safeguarding and with extensive experience of using the concept in multiple research and teaching activities.

The Associate Professors, like other GCCS staff, will not be required to spend extensive amounts of time in Durham, given that many centre activities are taking place in multiple locations and online. Due to the reach and scope of the Contextual Safeguarding programme many GCCS members work to a hybrid working model, with research underway in various part of the UK as well as via online data collection methods. Travel for research and citizenship duties are relatively frequent, and are reimbursed. Travel to Durham for compulsory departmental meetings on a termly basis (twice a term), will not be reimbursed with Durham being the place of employment for these posts.