Chance to explore some of the most famous crimes and criminals in British history on Glyndwr University course

A Wrexham Glyndŵr course offers the chance to explore some of the most infamous crimes and criminals in British history. 

The Notorious Crimes and Criminals short course aims to get to the heart of contemporary debates about the criminal justice system in England and Wales. Students will examine the crimes of the Yorkshire Ripper Peter Sutcliffe, Moors Murderer Myra Hindley, serial rapist John Worboys and Lukasz Reszpondek, who killed Ermatati Rodgers in Wrexham in 2008. 

Miscarriages of justice will also feature in the course in the form of Timothy Evans, who was executed for the murder of his wife and unborn daughter at their home in London – but the real culprit was serial killer John Christie. 

The course will look at how these notorious cases plus many others, have framed debates about criminal justice. Students will gain an insight into how crimes may be investigated and of the possible aims of sentencing. 

Jo Prescott, Lecturer in Criminology and Criminal Justice at Wrexham Glyndŵr University and Module Leader for the course, said: “The notorious crimes short course explores some of the key crimes and cases that have defined the way that crime is presented in the UK. These are cases that have sparked widespread debate and continue to fascinate all that choose to learn about them.

 “There’s a wide variety of cases covered across the module, some of which are historical and others more contemporary. The course enables students to think critically about how crime impacts legislation and law making and teaches them more generally about how society and the criminal justice system respond to crime.”

The 12-week course will also enable students to identify groups who may be vulnerable to crime and victimisation.

Colin, a previous student on the course said: “Notorious Crimes and Criminals was a really great course and offered much more than just an insight into the crimes and criminals you would expect to hear about on a course like this. 

“It explored these incidents from a number of informed perspectives, including Policing and Criminology, enjoyably pushing my thinking around how I view the people involved and the way their crimes were investigated and prosecuted. 

“This wasn’t just a rogues gallery, this was a brilliant chance to chat and discuss crimes and criminals with some really well informed people, and I know I and the other students really appreciated being given that opportunity.”

Wrexham Glyndŵr University’s Criminology programme has been ranked 4th in the UK for Criminology programmes (UK Guardian league table) and has received an NSS result of 92 per cent for overall satisfaction. 

For more information on the course, which starts on November 1, 2021, visit: https://www.glyndwr.co.uk/en/ShortCourses/NotoriousCrimesandCriminals/