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| Introducing phase two of Reading the Riots: police, victims and the courts | Introducing phase two of Reading the Riots: police, victims and the courts |
| (9 months later) | |
| Reading the Riots is a social research study conducted by the Guardian and London School of Economics into the unprecedented outbreak of civil disorder that spread across English cities in August 2011. | Reading the Riots is a social research study conducted by the Guardian and London School of Economics into the unprecedented outbreak of civil disorder that spread across English cities in August 2011. |
| At its heart are almost 600 in-depth interviews with people who had personal experiences of the riots and their aftermath. It is the only study into the riots to include large numbers of interviews with rioters, and the longest-running research project into the violence, arson and looting that occurred over four consecutive nights. | At its heart are almost 600 in-depth interviews with people who had personal experiences of the riots and their aftermath. It is the only study into the riots to include large numbers of interviews with rioters, and the longest-running research project into the violence, arson and looting that occurred over four consecutive nights. |
| The study draws on perspectives from all sides, ranging from individuals who admitted ransacking department stores to victims who lost homes and police officers who risked their lives to maintain order. | The study draws on perspectives from all sides, ranging from individuals who admitted ransacking department stores to victims who lost homes and police officers who risked their lives to maintain order. |
| The project, supported by Open Society Foundations (OSF) and Joseph Rowntree Foundation, was inspired by a smaller research collaboration between a newspaper and a university in the aftermath of the Detroit riots in 1967. | The project, supported by Open Society Foundations (OSF) and Joseph Rowntree Foundation, was inspired by a smaller research collaboration between a newspaper and a university in the aftermath of the Detroit riots in 1967. |
| The Guardian and LSE partnership has lasted 10 months and involved a team of more than 100 journalists, academics and researchers. The principal methodology has been qualitative research – in-depth, lengthy, free-flowing interviews that were later analysed and coded by a team of LSE-based researchers. | The Guardian and LSE partnership has lasted 10 months and involved a team of more than 100 journalists, academics and researchers. The principal methodology has been qualitative research – in-depth, lengthy, free-flowing interviews that were later analysed and coded by a team of LSE-based researchers. |
| Reading the Riots is divided into two phases of research. The first phase, published in December, focused on those responsible for the disorder, the rioters. It was based on analysis of interviews with 270 people who took part in riots in London, Birmingham, Liverpool, Nottingham, Manchester and Salford. | Reading the Riots is divided into two phases of research. The first phase, published in December, focused on those responsible for the disorder, the rioters. It was based on analysis of interviews with 270 people who took part in riots in London, Birmingham, Liverpool, Nottingham, Manchester and Salford. |
| Those interviews dispelled widespread assumptions about the use of social media and involvement of gangs in the riots, and highlighted the motives that rioters said brought them on to the streets, such as opportunism, perceived social injustices, and anger and frustration at the way their communities were policed. | Those interviews dispelled widespread assumptions about the use of social media and involvement of gangs in the riots, and highlighted the motives that rioters said brought them on to the streets, such as opportunism, perceived social injustices, and anger and frustration at the way their communities were policed. |
| The first phase, which included analysis of an exclusive database of more than 2.6m riot-related tweets, concluded with a conference at the LSE attended by the home secretary, Theresa May, and the leader of the opposition, Ed Miliband. | The first phase, which included analysis of an exclusive database of more than 2.6m riot-related tweets, concluded with a conference at the LSE attended by the home secretary, Theresa May, and the leader of the opposition, Ed Miliband. |
| This week, the Guardian and LSE are publishing the findings of the project's second phase, based on more than 300 interviews with a broader cross-section of people affected by the riots, including 130 police officers deployed in London, Birmingham, Manchester, Salford and Liverpool. They ranged from constables who found themselves deployed on the frontline to senior officers up to and including the rank of chief constable. | This week, the Guardian and LSE are publishing the findings of the project's second phase, based on more than 300 interviews with a broader cross-section of people affected by the riots, including 130 police officers deployed in London, Birmingham, Manchester, Salford and Liverpool. They ranged from constables who found themselves deployed on the frontline to senior officers up to and including the rank of chief constable. |
| Almost all interviews were facilitated by police forces, who either selected candidates for interview or offered their staff an opportunity to participate in the study. All interviewees were granted the option of anonymity, and encouraged to speak freely about their experiences. The Metropolitan police required a press officer to be present during interviews. | Almost all interviews were facilitated by police forces, who either selected candidates for interview or offered their staff an opportunity to participate in the study. All interviewees were granted the option of anonymity, and encouraged to speak freely about their experiences. The Metropolitan police required a press officer to be present during interviews. |
| Separately, we interviewed 40 victims of the riots, some of whom had lost their businesses or seen their homes burned down, and 25 so-called vigilantes who, at the height of the disorder and amid concern that police were losing control, took to the streets to defend their neighbourhoods. | Separately, we interviewed 40 victims of the riots, some of whom had lost their businesses or seen their homes burned down, and 25 so-called vigilantes who, at the height of the disorder and amid concern that police were losing control, took to the streets to defend their neighbourhoods. |
| The second phase of Reading the Riots, sponsored exclusively by OSF, also looks at other aspects of the criminal justice response, interviewing 50 lawyers who defended rioters and 25 Crown Prosecution Service lawyers, including the director of public prosecutions, Keir Starmer. | The second phase of Reading the Riots, sponsored exclusively by OSF, also looks at other aspects of the criminal justice response, interviewing 50 lawyers who defended rioters and 25 Crown Prosecution Service lawyers, including the director of public prosecutions, Keir Starmer. |
| Many of the richest insights have come from interviews with ordinary people who provided personal accounts of the most intense bouts of civil unrest in modern English history. | Many of the richest insights have come from interviews with ordinary people who provided personal accounts of the most intense bouts of civil unrest in modern English history. |
| The second phase addresses the question of why some English cities that might have been expected to experience serious disorder saw only minor outbreaks of violence. In Bristol and Leeds – cities that saw skirmishes but no full-scale rioting – 33 individuals offered insights into how order was maintained. | The second phase addresses the question of why some English cities that might have been expected to experience serious disorder saw only minor outbreaks of violence. In Bristol and Leeds – cities that saw skirmishes but no full-scale rioting – 33 individuals offered insights into how order was maintained. |
| Finally, Reading the Riots has in recent months taken the research back into the communities that were most affected by the disorder, for seven town hall-style debates. More than 600 people attended the "community conversations" in the London boroughs of Tottenham, Peckham and Croydon, as well as Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Salford. | Finally, Reading the Riots has in recent months taken the research back into the communities that were most affected by the disorder, for seven town hall-style debates. More than 600 people attended the "community conversations" in the London boroughs of Tottenham, Peckham and Croydon, as well as Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Salford. |
| • Tim Newburn and Paul Lewis will be online from 3pm on Monday to answer your questions on phase two of Reading the Riots. Please post your questions for them below the line here | • Tim Newburn and Paul Lewis will be online from 3pm on Monday to answer your questions on phase two of Reading the Riots. Please post your questions for them below the line here |
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