Lucrezia Rubini, Psychology, University of Lancashire (2025 Cohort)

Hi! My name is Lucrezia, I am 25, and I started my PGR journey in October 2025 in the School of Psychology and Humanities at the University of Lancashire. My research focuses on child criminal exploitation (CCE) and child sexual exploitation (CSE), with the aim of better understanding these forms of exploitation and supporting services to effectively safeguard vulnerable children.

I recently had the pleasure of completing a six-month, part-time Research in Practice Placement with Coastal Child and Adult Therapeutic Services (CCATS). CCATS is an independent, multidisciplinary organisation with extensive experience in providing psychological assessment and therapeutic services to children, adolescents, and adults. Their work includes both clinical and forensic settings and includes psychological and court assessments, psychological therapy, specialist support for children’s residential care providers, and consultancy to organisations.

During my placement, I worked alongside psychologists supporting children’s residential care homes, their staff, and the young people living within them. Many were one-person homes, where a team of staff provided intensive support to a young person with complex needs and behavioural challenges. I accompanied psychologists to the homes and contributed to Reflective Practice sessions, which gave staff a space to discuss challenges they were experiencing in supporting the young person, as well as the personal impact of working in such an intensive environment.

A large part of my role involved using research to provide practical support tailored to the needs of each home. The challenges varied: one home wanted strategies to help a young person reduce their vaping, while others were navigating self-injurious behaviour, frequent health-related concerns and care-seeking behaviours, or online bullying. After identifying the needs of the young person and staff, I researched the relevant topic and translated the evidence into accessible and practical recommendations. I then shared these with staff through team meetings or Reflective Practice sessions.

Alongside this individualised work, I also contributed to training and workshops for residential staff. For example, during training on trauma-informed care and maintaining a child-centred approach, I introduced psychological theory and research around basic human needs and the impact of chronic stress and trauma on the developing brain. We then used this knowledge as a starting point for discussion about how these principles could be applied to the young people staff were supporting in their everyday work.

One of the things I valued most about the placement was having the opportunity to see what translating research into practice actually looks like. As PGRs, we spend a lot of time reading, analysing, and thinking critically about evidence, but it can sometimes be difficult to see how that knowledge translates beyond academia. At CCATS, I had to take complex research findings and ask a much more practical question: what does this actually mean for the people supporting a young person every day? Learning to communicate psychological knowledge in a way that was accessible, relevant, and genuinely useful to staff was one of the most valuable skills I developed.

The placement also gave me a much better understanding of the realities and complexities of working with vulnerable young people. My research is closely connected to this population, so having experience within an applied setting has given me a perspective that I could not have gained from the literature alone. It reminded me of the importance of ensuring that research is not only academically rigorous, but also grounded in the realities faced by young people and the professionals supporting them.

Perhaps an unexpected outcome was how much the placement influenced the way I think about my future career. I had the opportunity to work alongside an incredibly knowledgeable and supportive multidisciplinary team and to meet professionals whose work I found inspiring. Before the placement, I already knew that I wanted my research to have practical impact, but the experience reinforced my aspiration to develop as a scientist-practitioner: someone who can bring research into clinical practice while also allowing experience from practice to inform meaningful research.

For anyone applying for a Research in Practice Placement, my main practical advice would be to keep an eye on the RiPPS application deadlines and plan ahead where possible! At the same time, I would encourage other PGRs to keep an open mind about the opportunities available to them. A placement does not necessarily need to replicate your research project to be relevant. Some of the most valuable learning can come from stepping slightly outside your usual academic work and thinking about which skills, perspectives, and professional experiences you would like to gain. I found the application process very straightforward, and the NWSSDTP team was incredibly responsive and supportive, including helping me to start my placement earlier when an unexpected opportunity arose.

Looking back, I am incredibly grateful that I had the opportunity to spend six months with CCATS. I finished the placement with new skills, greater confidence, a much clearer sense of the kind of career I would like to build, and connections with professionals I hope to stay in touch with long after my PhD. Most importantly, it reminded me why opportunities to step outside the university environment can be such a valuable part of doctoral training.