Peer Research

This page will share research that has been conducted by people in the adult entertainment/sex industry to educate and raise awareness and understanding of their work. Some of the publications have been conducted independently with others alongside support agencies. To share research on this page please fill in the form on the 'Contact Us' page or email info@neswf.co.uk

'What’s a Nice Girl Like You Doing in a Job Like This?'

English Collective of Prostitutes (ECP), 2019

In the research paper What’s a Nice Girl Like You Doing in a Job Like This? published in 2019, ECP compared pay and conditions between sex work and other jobs disproportionately done by women. In doing so, they uncovered many similarities and some crucial differences. By looking at sex work in the context of other jobs traditionally done by women, they broke through mystifications and the divisions between sex workers and other women workers, highlighting exploitation across the range of jobs, showing evidence that sex work isn’t inherently, or exclusively, exploitative.

https://prostitutescollective.net/whats-a-nice-girl-like-you-doing-in-a-job-like-this/

'Decriminalisation of Prostitution: the Evidence'

English Collective of Prostitutes (ECP)

In November 2015, the parliamentary symposium ‘Decriminalisation of Prostitution: the Evidence’, took place in the House of Commons. The symposium brought together, for the first time in the UK, the largest and most robust body of evidence to date on decriminalisation. In the report, ECP included the key findings and the full transcript of the evidence submitted on the day and in writing, which provides a definitive source of statistical and qualitative information to inform law and policy.

https://prostitutescollective.net/decriminalisation-of-prostitution-the-evidence/

'Sex workers are getting screwed by Brexit'

English Collective of Prostitutes (ECP)

As the clock ticks down to Brexit and with sex work unrecognised as work in the UK, EU sex workers living and working in the UK are fighting for the right to stay in the country. Arrests and deportations of EU migrant workers have been rising, particularly since the Brexit referendum in 2016. With the help of Legal Action for Women and, in a few cases, lawyers, ECP have researched legal rulings and prepared letters laying out sex workers’ rights which migrant women have used to defend themselves from deportation.

https://prostitutescollective.net/sex-workers-are-getting-screwed-by-brexit/

No Silence to Violence - SWARM

To mark International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers on December 17th 2018, SWARM published ‘No silence to violence’, a report on violence against women in prostitution in the UK. The report is specifically aimed at people working in organisations which tackle violence against women and girls (VAWG) and which deliver support services to women who have experienced violence. It includes in-depth testimony from women who have lived experience of doing sex work in the UK and features contributions and case studies from Basis Yorkshire, English Collective of Prostitutes and National Ugly Mugs.

Download a copy here.

'The Type of Girl That Would Do That’ (2015)

This study set out to understand the nature of sex work in Durham and Darlington using the successful, peer-led methodology of Changing Lives’ Girls Are Proud (GAP) project, to uncover truths about the lived experiences of sex workers that operate in County Durham and Darlington. The research behind this report took place in 2015.

Link: Peer Research Into Sex Work in Durham and Darlington (PDF)

‘Peer: Exploring the Lives of Sex Workers in Tyne and Weir’

Exploring the different experiences of women involved in opportunistic or street sex work, and those involved in escorting, alongside the view of stakeholders, PEER outlines a range of recommendations to support the development of policy and practice in this field.

PEER: Exploring the Lives of Sex Workers in Tyne and Wear

‘Hidden for Survival’ (2008)

Peer Research into the lives of sex workers within Newcastle, Gateshead, Sunderland, South Tyneside and North Tyneside.

Hidden for Survival -Sex Worker Report

'MAP: Exploring the lives of Male Sex Workers in Tyne and Weir’ (2013)

Male Action Project (MAP) operates as part of Changing Lives and works closely with the Girls Are Proud (GAP) project. This Summary Report provides information from research and includes future recommendations based on findings.

MAP: Exploring the lives of Male Sex Workers in Tyne and Wear

'Peer Talk: hidden stories. A participatory research project with women who sell or swap sex in Teesside'

M O'Neill, A Jobe, C Bilton, K Stockdale, A Way Out

Peer Talk: hidden stories sought to provide an evidence base to inform service provision, knowledge, policy and practice in Teesside and specifically to; document the lived experience and needs of women selling sex including their use and experience of services, and of the service providers themselves; contribute to research, academic and policy debates in the North East region but also nationally; use participatory peer driven methodology to undertake the research and build the research capacity of academic and practitioner partners.

Access the research here.