Projects per year
Personal profile
Research interests
Katy was appointed Professor of Criminology at the University of South Wales, in July 2013. Previously, Katy worked as a data analyst in the Institute of Criminology at the University of Cambridge after completing her PhD there in 2000. In 2002, Katy moved to Wales to take up a Research Fellowship at the University of Glamorgan (now the University of South Wales) and in 2008 she became a Reader in Criminology and a permanent member of the Criminology team. During the course of her academic career, Katy’s research has focused on substance use. She has conducted studies that have investigated a wide range of substance-related issues including: drug use among arrestees, the causal connection between drug use and crime among prisoners, the effectiveness of drug treatment, the use of Take-Home Naloxone among people who use opiates, the implementation of the Welsh Substance Misuse Strategy, the characteristics of opiate overdose events, substance use and misuse among university students, and the misuse and diversion of over-the-counter and prescription medication.
More recently, Katy has been involved in research investigating the impact of minimum pricing for alcohol in Wales. She has also worked closely with substance misuse services across Wales on a collaborative project investigating what lessons can be learned from lockdown moving forward into a post-COVID world. The philosophy of harm reduction underpins Katy’s research and she is a member of the UK Government's Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD), Welsh Government's National Implementation Board for Drug Poisoning Prevention and Executive Board member of the Dyfodol, IRIS, Gwent and Dyfed Drug and Alcohol Service consortium of substance misuse treatment providers. In September 2022, she was appointed as Chair of the Kaleidoscope Sub-group for Research, Development and Innovation and helped them to develop a Foundation for Research, Development and Innovation. She is no longer Chair but remains involved in helping support the continued development of the Foundation.
She is currently working on a Welsh Government funded national evaluation of Buvidal (a novel depot form of opioid substitution therapy) and on an evaluation of the organisational impact of Substance Use Officers for Welsh Probation Service. She is also co-leading with Dr Ben Gray from Public Health Wales, a qualitative study (funded by Health Care Research Wales) investigating changes in substance use among people during their time in prison and at the critical moment immediately following their release. She is also collaborating with Dr James Morgan (London Metropolitan University), Dr Aled Davies (a GP with special interest in Substance Misuse) and Dr Marian Buhociu (USW) on a qualitative study funded by the KEIF programme that is investigating heroin using lifestyles with a focus on help-seeking for health problems.
In addition to her research activities, Katy is working with colleagues across USW to develop and support initiatives that seek to reduce substance related harm among university students. This includes the roll-out of the Staying Safe Programme (an online course for students).
Teaching interests
Katy is module leader for the MSc module 'Drug Interventions' and she contributes to modules at BSc level as a guest speaker. She also supervises BSc, MSc and PhD research students with their projects and dissertations. Katy has a particular interest in research methods and for many years enjoyed teaching second year students how to use SPSS and NVivo to analyse and interpret data.
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Education/Academic qualification
Criminology, PhD, Mental Health Review Tribunals: The Release of Restricted Patients, University of Cambridge
Award Date: 7 Jul 2000
Criminology, MPhil, University of Cambridge
Award Date: 1 Jul 1994
External positions
Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, UK Government
1 Jan 2025 → …
Steering Group member - Substance Use Officers Project, HM Prison & Probation Services (HMPPS), Wales
1 Aug 2023 → …
Chair of the Kaleidoscope Research, Development and Innovation Foundation
22 Sept 2022 → 30 Aug 2023
Commission Member, Western Bay Drugs Commission
1 Sept 2022 → …
Member of Advisory Board - Ripping up the Rulebook (Wellcome funded project), Goldsmiths, University of London
1 May 2022 → …
Steering Group Member for a Scottish Government funded project: Naloxone in Police Scotland , Edinburgh, Napier University
1 May 2021 → 31 Dec 2021
Academic research advisor, Barod and Kaleidoscope
1 May 2020 → …
National Implementation Board of Drug Poisoning Prevention, Substance Misuse, Welsh Government
1 May 2018 → …
Dyfodol, IRIS, Gwent and Dyfed Drug and Alcohol Service consortium of substance misuse treatment providers, Barod and Kaleidoscope
1 Mar 2015 → …
Keywords
- H Social Sciences (General)
- substance use and misuse
- illegal drugs
- harm reduction
- drug-crime connections
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Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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Reducing drug-related harm in those who have used substances whilst in prison: a qualitative study
1/10/24 → 30/09/26
Project: Research
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Qualitative study of drug use in prison and on release
Holloway, K., Gray, D. B., Lines , D. R., Perret, S., Thomas , E., Vigar, M. & Lovell, R.
1/10/24 → 30/09/26
Project: Research
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Evaluation of Buvidal
Holloway, K., John, B., Roderique-Davies, G., Buhociu, M., Quelch, D., Murray, S., Molina, J., Schifano, F., Livingston, W. & Song, D. J.
1/07/23 → 31/07/25
Project: Research
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Heroin using lifestyles
Holloway, K., Buhociu, M., Morgan, J. & Davies, A.
1/08/24 → 31/03/25
Project: Research
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Evaluation of the organisational impact of Substance Use Officers
Holloway, K., Murray, S. & Seel, C. J.
1/10/23 → 31/01/25
Project: Research
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Buvidal: is it really a 'game changer' in the treatment of problematic opioid use?
Holloway, K. & Schifano, F., 30 Nov 2023, The Conversation.Research output: Other contribution
Open Access -
“It's called homophobia baby” Exploring LGBTQ+ Substance Use and Treatment Experiences in the UK
Murray, S., Holloway, K. & Buhociu, M., 25 Jul 2023, (E-pub ahead of print) In: Dugs: Education, Prevention and Policy. 00, 00, 11 p., 2238118.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile38 Downloads (Pure) -
Assessing the impact of minimum pricing for alcohol on the wider population of drinkers: interim findings
Buhociu, M., Holloway, K. & Murray, S., 28 Feb 2023, Welsh Government. 162 p.Research output: Book/Report › Commissioned report
Open Access -
Assessing the experiences and impact of minimum pricing for alcohol on service users and service providers: final report
Perkins, A., Livingston, W., Dumbrell, J., McCluskey, S., Steele, S., Holloway, K., Buhociu, M., Murray, S. & Madoc-Jones, I., 15 Jan 2025, 76 p.Research output: Book/Report › Commissioned report
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Assessing the impact of minimum pricing for alcohol on the wider population of drinkers: final report
Holloway, K., Buhociu, M., Murray, S., Livingston, W. & Perkins, A., 15 Jan 2025, Welsh Government. 115 p.Research output: Book/Report › Commissioned report
Open Access
Activities
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Street Drugs Wales: Going Out and Staying Safe
Katy Holloway (Speaker)
26 Sept 2024Activity: Participating in or organising an event › Participation in conference
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Public Health Wales (External organisation)
Katy Holloway (Chair)
13 Sept 2024 → …Activity: Membership › Membership of board
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Long-acting injectable buprenorphine: how does it work and what does it do?
Katy Holloway (Speaker)
11 Sept 2024Activity: Talk or presentation › Invited talk
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Fourth UK Drugs Ministerial
Katy Holloway (Speaker)
16 Nov 2023Activity: Participating in or organising an event › Participation in workshop, seminar, course
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Student drug use and university drug policy
Katy Holloway (Speaker)
6 Oct 2023Activity: Talk or presentation › Invited talk
Press/Media
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The extraordinary wait for treatment in Wales' worst hotspot for drug deaths
16/01/23
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Expert Comment
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Life in the Welsh community where heroin and deadly pills are destroying lives
1/01/23
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Expert Comment
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Potential unintended consequences of introducing minimum pricing for alcohol in Wales
17/02/20
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Expert Comment
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Prescription drug misuse among people who use illegal drugs
25/01/20
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Expert Comment