My research interests revolve around policy responses to social disadvantage and inequalities, and the symbolic power of social policies. I have published extensively on issues relating to ‘troubled families’, child poverty and social justice in the past and continues to engage with these topics. However, in recent years, my research interests have primarily focused on the role of local and community sport and leisure clubs and facilities in people's everyday lives and the value that is attached, or not attached, to them.

I am also involved with the Rural Durham Community Research Network  please explore our resources.

Here is some of my more recent work:

Crossley, S. (2026).   The (un)politics of ‘sportswashing’: what’s the problem?.T International Journal of Sport Policy and Politics, 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1080/19406940.2026.2662214

Billingham, L., Curry, F., & Crossley, S. (2024). Sports Cages as Social Infrastructure: Sociality, Context, and Contest in Hackney's Cages Antipode, 56(6), 2021-2041. https://doi.org/10.1111/anti.13090

Crossley, S., Curry, F., & Billingham, L. (2024). ‘You either go on the gang life, or you go on that football life’: class, race, and place in imaginaries of South London’s sports cages' ‘You either go on the gang life, or you go on that football life’: class, race, and place in imaginaries of South London’s sports cages. Journal of Youth Studies, 27(10), 1494-1509. https://doi.org/10.1080/13676261.2023.2226597

You can also explore more of my work here

My commitment to community-engaged and participatory research is rooted in growing up on an outlying island in Hong Kong, where strong communal connections supported the wellbeing of women and young people. Trained in social work, I have developed participatory and collaborative approaches to co-produce knowledge, practice, and social change.

Guided by feminist and participatory theories, I have developed methods including Cooperative Grounded Inquiry, Collaborative Focus Group Analysis, and Collaborative Practice Research for Social Work. I also publish on participatory methods and pedagogy, advocating for research training as a form of praxis.

My research focuses on three areas: violence against women across personal and political contexts; social work practice and the co-production of innovative models with practitioners and service users; and the impact of political change on everyday lives, including Hong Kong’s social movements and diaspora communities. I also co-directed the documentary I Am Fine, Thank You., exploring Hongkongers’ identities in the UK.

This is some of my recent work:

Liu, K., & Kong, S. (2026, January 1) 'I am fine, thank you' [Documentary film].

McBeath, B., Kong, S. T., & Uggerhøj, L. (2026). Practice Research in Social Work—Participation, Co-Creation, and Service Users’ Positions: Introduction to the Articles from the Sixth International Conference on Practice Research Research on Social Work Practice. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/10497315261446482

Noone, C., & Kong, S. (2025). Reconceptualising the Cyclical Process in Participatory Action Research: A Focus on the Individual-Collective Dynamics International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 24. https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069251346262

You can also explore more of my work here

I have been a member of the steering committee of the CSJCA for over 10 years, taking on a co-director role in 2024. I'm a Associate Professor in Sociology at Durham University, and my research has broadly focused on institutional responses to victims of violence and victims' experiences of accessing justice and support services. This theme has been explored through research on trafficking, asylum, sex work, sexual violence, and child protection/ safeguarding. My most recent research has been undertaken in partnership with neurodivergent victim-survivors of sexual violence/ victim-survivors with learning disabilities and third sector organisations. This work has involved participatory and creative approaches with the overall aim of developing inclusive responses to victim-survivors of sexual violence.

You can explore some of my collaborative work towards inclusive criminal justice responses to sexual violence here including co-created resources 'From Us, To You' , 'From Us, To You: Good and Bad Relationships' and a co-written report 'Co-designing Inclusive Police Spaces'

You can also explore more of my work here

My research has focused for many years on mobilities/transport in Africa, working in close collaboration with academics in African universities and local and international NGOs. I combine ethnographic approaches with spatial perspectives, reflecting my interdisciplinary approach which draws on both Anthropology and Geography. Uneven power relationships and associated issues of exclusion are linking themes through my work. Associated with this is a long-standing focus on developing participatory methodologies (most recently co-investigation with unemployed young women and young men through peer research). 

You can see my more recent work here:

Porter, G., Rink, B., Murphy, E., Adamu, F., Dayil, P.B., Clark, S., Maskiti, B., Dungey, C. and de Lannoy, A., 2026. Engaging citizens from low-income communities in transport planning: experiences from peer research studies conducted in three African cities Journal of Transport Geography, 130, p.104484. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2024.104109

Porter, G., Rink, B., Maskiti, B., Clark, S. and Barber, C., 2025. Young men’s daily mobility needs and practices in two low income neighbourhoods of Cape Town: reflections on first mile experiences, using an innovative community peer research methodology.  African Transport Studies, 3, p.100033.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aftran.2025.100033

Rink, B., Porter, G., Maskiti, B., Clark, S., Barber, C. and peer researchers [named]: 2025. A Curated Walk with Peer Researchers and their Communities: Engaging a Research Journey Toward Meaningful Impact.  Gateways: International journal of community research, v.18, 1: 1-15.

You can also explore more of my work here