Dr Vivian Leacock

MA (Hons), MA, PhD, PG Cert Academic Practice, PG Diploma Academic Practice, FHEA

Viv Leacock is Science and Society Team Leader in the Office of the Chief Researcher in the Scottish Government. The team provides strategic analytical input into the development of the evidence base on science and public engagement; builds research capacity through collaboration with scientists, engineers and social scientists in government, external and international research communities and UK Research Councils; and promotes interdisciplinarity between social science and science.

Research activities include exploring the reach and impact of various scientific communities activities’ on engaging diverse publics in science to work on bioethics, governance and genomics.

Within Government, Viv has previously worked in the Justice Department, Enterprise, Transport and Lifelong Learning Department, the Office of the Permanent Secretary and the European Commission (DG Justice and Home Affairs). In these posts, she has led research on and made positive contributions to policy development in the inter-related fields of criminal justice, social inclusion and regeneration, education, lifelong learning and training. In October 2005, Viv took up a three year Criminology Lectureship at the University of Glasgow (on a career break) where she taught on the Undergraduate and Postgraduate Public Policy Programmes and researched in the areas of youth justice, equalities and criminal justice.

She holds an MA (Hons) Politics (First Class) (University of Glasgow, 1993), MA Criminology (Keele University, 1995), Level 1 Certificate Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (Keele University, 1996), Ph.D Criminology (Keele University, 2000), PG Certificate in Academic Practice (University of Glasgow, 2007) and PG Diploma in Academic Practice (With Distinction) (University of Glasgow, 2008).

She is a member of the European Society of Criminology (ESC) and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (HEA).