Reading the Summer 2024 Riots: Introduction to the Special Issue

Abstract

On 15 May 2025, several months after the sentencing, a workshop titled “Reading the Summer 2024 Riots” was convened at the University of Leicester by colleagues from the School of Criminology, Sociology and Social Policy. Funded by the Leicester Institute of Advanced Studies (LIAS), the workshop drew inspiration from the “Reading the Riots” study into the 2011 UK riots led by Professor Tim Newburn at the London School of Economics in collaboration with The Guardian (Newburn, 2011).

Unlike the 2011 riots, however, there was a notable absence of academic voices in public debate following the 2024 unrest. Whether this reflected a lack of media engagement, institutional barriers, or academic reticence remains unclear. Nevertheless, participants agreed that there was a pressing need to analyse and better understand both the attack and the subsequent unrest. The workshop created a space for interdisciplinary dialogue among 15 academics at different career stages and disciplines. Discussions centred on key questions: why people were motivated to protest; why some engaged in violence; who was involved; who instigated events; and whether the government’s response was appropriate. The workshop also addressed the relative absence of academic engagement and considered what lessons might be drawn for future research and public intervention.

Keywords: UK Riots 2024; criminology; public policy; interdisciplinary dialogue; academic engagement.