2025 in review: an incredible year for IPPPRI

As 2025 draws to an end, it’s with great pride that I reflect on what has been an incredible year for the International Policing and Public Protection Research Institute (IPPPRI).

Last year, we announced our new name and our intentions to use research to tackle exploitation in all its forms – with a global reach. I’m pleased to say that we are delivering on this, making great strides in a diverse range of research areas.

Expanding into new areas

Our work is now spread across five key workstreams: online child sexual abuse; extremism and counter terrorism; policing; communities and organised crime; and emotional health and wellbeing and marginalised groups, including victims and survivors.

This is difficult, challenging work, involving sensitive and demanding research, but it is our belief that this work is critical in helping move the dial on the many areas of exploitation and vulnerability we face globally.

Our team of research specialists have been hard at work on projects in each of these areas, teaming up with a wide range of partners, whilst continually looking for new funding opportunities to further our impact.

Making a real difference

Impact is and always will be key. Our research must always have purpose and we are committed to seeing every project through from concept to publication, then onward to sharing and influencing for positive change.

I could write thousands of words on the work that has been completed or is underway this year, but as a snapshot:

• We recently announced the multi-agency ECHO project, funded by Safe Online and the Graham Dacre Foundation, designing and piloting a ground-breaking new approach which empowers survivors to act and obtain support and representation in relation to their child sexual abuse material.
• Our Dity Online project, funded by Safe Online, aims to develop better understanding of the impact of war and war-related displacement on the vulnerabilities of children to online abuse.
• The Dawes Trust has provided funding to enable us to gain a deeper understanding of emerging problems such as child sexual abuse offending in the Metaverse.
• We were proud partners with the Internet Watch Foundation on their ground-breaking Think Before you Share campaign, for which we provided research insights to inform their messaging, funded by the Oak Foundation, before providing a full evaluation of its impact.
• Our work exploring extremism has continued, including a three-month project researching the impact of critical world events on extremist misinformation network, and how extremist groups are exploiting the popularity of video games to recruit and radicalise impressionable users.

Working across the University

Alongside these many programmes, often delivered with wonderful external organisations, it’s been wonderful to work alongside Prof Emma Williams and Prof Matt Fossey delivering on the first year of the Centre for Excellence for Equity in Uniformed Public Services (CEEUPS), also at ARU.

Together with colleagues from CEEUPS, We have worked on a range of projects, including the hidden impact and experiences of social workers addressing sexual violence in the housing scheme for Ukrainian refugees in the UK, specialist police officer wellbeing, child criminal and sexual exploitation in unregulated children’s homes, and health inequalities in policing. In collaboration with Protect Children, we’ve also completed our analysis of male survivor insights from their global Our Voice Survivor Survey.

I’ve covered such a small section of our 2025 work here, and haven’t done the team justice in reflecting the diversity of their research, but I hope it gives an indication of the depth and breadth of work underway in our five work areas.

Harnessing the power of collaboration

2025 also saw the hosting of yet another hugely successful conference. IPPPRI25 brought together delegates and speakers from across the globe for three days of insightful discussions, knowledge sharing, and collaborative planning to combat online child abuse.

We were also honoured to host the 2025 Excellence in Global Online Protection Awards, a meaningful occasion to celebrate and acknowledge the incredible individuals and organisations dedicated to safeguarding children from online harm.

The feedback from this year’s event was incredibly positive, with 90% of delegates who completed our survey agreeing they are very likely to attend next year. You won’t be surprised to hear that planning for the 2026 event is already well underway, with registration due to open in January.

We’ve also shared our learning with colleagues at our smaller events, coffee mornings and workshops, and have presented at conferences and events all over the world, hosted by external partners. These are vital opportunities to present what we have found, in the hope that others will use our insights to further similar work in their own fields, with the shared goals of protecting people from harm.

Celebrating our team

None of this work would be possible without the ever-growing team of professionals we have at IPPPRI. Each one brings so much to our institute, from newly qualified research fellows, to senior academics with years of experience in researching these critical areas.

I am continuously humbled by their dedication and professionalism in furthering these areas of work and their fierce commitment to seeing ‘good’ happen from the results of their research.

Thank you to every member of my team and to every partner that has worked with us, commissioned us, or even just read our research. Our impact is the result of combined efforts to make change.

I look forward to working with you all once again in 2026.

Prof Sam Lundrigan, Director, IPPPRI