A researcher who asks why
Jenny, our Chief of Research, joined us from the University of South Wales, where she established her reputation as a leading academic in the field of Green Criminology and animal harms. Her published work spans the illegal pet trade, wildlife crime, animal sexual assault and irresponsible dog ownership – looking closely at the human behaviours and systems behind these harmful practices.
Understanding the causes
Jenny’s role at the Centre is to research and evidence the causes behind animal harm. "We cannot fix a problem we don't fully understand," she says. "Rather than treat the symptoms of cruelty and neglect, we need to understand their causes, and address them."
Building the foundations
Jenny’s spent her first months building the foundations and preparing for the Centre's public launch. With her team, she’s been shaping the Centre's research strategy, listening to partners and the wider sector to agree where the evidence gaps are and where new research will be most impactful.
Counting the cost of harm
The Centre's first study, The Economic Costs of Reported Illegal Animal Abuse and Neglect in Great Britain, is already underway and an interim report on the scale of the issue has just been published.
The study pulls together existing evidence, mapping reported offences against animals and the existing data gaps, to build a strong foundation for what follows. This early work quantifies the economic cost of these animal harms (just one part of the cost to animal and human victims), adding to the welfare case for investing in prevention rather than paying to deal with the consequences.
What comes next
The Centre launches publicly on 10 September 2026, a milestone that Jenny describes as "a really exciting moment for animals, and the sector".
Proposed research will then look into the links between domestic abuse and animal harm, the gap between the UK's reputation as a nation of animal lovers and how people behave, and what AI will mean for the care of pets and livestock.
More than the research
Jenny’s commitment to animals runs well beyond her research. Alongside her academic career she’s fostered and rehomed more than 200 dogs as part of a local charity. One of them, Rayne –a "failed foster" who arrived with her three siblings as a six-week-old puppy, having been found inside a plant pot in a wheelbarrow –never left and is now her constant companion.
