Launched in 2016, Bristol University Press, home of the award-winning imprint Policy Press, is a leading not-for-profit publisher in the Social Sciences with an agenda to publish world-class research that addresses global social challenges.

Winner of the 2024 Independent Academic and Professional Publisher of the Year award, the judges commended their world-class, peer-reviewed scholarship that promotes social justice and reframes ideas in a global context.

"Bristol has a very clear, mission-led and impact-based publishing strategy with social issues at the core ... its books make a difference."

They publish across a wide range of subject areas including:

Subject Area
Description
Business, Management and Economics
Fresh perspectives on the economy, future of work and the relationship between business and society.
Children, Young People, and Families
Challenges current policy with practical guidance to those working with children and young people in often difficult circumstances.
Criminology & Criminal Justice and Policing
Dynamic global research offering new insights for policy and practice debates
Health and social care
Global health, health inequalities and research into policy and practice.
Human Geography, Environment and International Development
Tackles the big issues, from equality to population growth to sustainability.
Law
Work on current affairs and topics of public, such as those in our Law, Society, Policy series.
Politics & International Relations
Focuses on today’s global political challenges. Highlights include the Bristol Studies in East Asian International Relations.
Public & Social Policy
Major collection on social issues to positively influence policy and practice.
Social Work
Addresses issues arising from poverty, inequality and social injustice.
Sociology list
Global outlook featuring with specialisms in migration, gender, race and ethnicity. Key series Gender and Sociology, Global Migration and Social Change, Sociology of Diversity
Urban Studies
Covers complex problems like urban poverty, gentrification, climate change and educational inequality.

Core Collections: Sociology, Politics, Social Work, Social Public Policy, and Criminology.

Shortlisted for 14 internationally recognised awards in 2024.

260 books and 22 journals published by BUP each year.

65 book series published including a strong list of US-based editors and academics

Award-Winning and Acclaimed Titles

Choice Outstanding Academic Titles 2024 winner

Gendering Green Criminology

This first publication in green criminology devoted to gender investigates gendered patterns to offending, victimisation and environmental harms. It includes feminist and intersectional analysis, and original case studies from the Global North and Global South. The book also examines actions that have been taken in response to gendered crimes and harms, together with insights on the gendered nature of resistance.

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Critical Race Theory and the Search for Truth

Part of the Global Migration and Social Change Series , this book presents a comprehensive exploration of Critical Race Theory, offering a clear understanding of its origins, the way it has been problematized and its potential for societal change. By examining the historical influence of imperialism and capitalism, the author critiques both liberal and conservative perspectives. Centring the voices of marginalized groups, the book highlights their position as agents of change who have been consistently rejected, ignored or attacked by both the right and the left.

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Agenda for Social Justice 3

The Agenda for Social Justice 3: Solutions for 2024 provides accessible insights into some of the most pressing social problems and proposes public policy responses to those problems.

Written by a highly respected team of authors brought together by the US-based Society for the Study of Social Problems (SSSP), the book offers recommendations for action by elected officials, policymakers and the public regarding key issues for social justice. Chapters include discussion of social problems related to criminal justice, the economy, food insecurity, education, healthcare, housing and immigration.

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Health Policy in the United States: Access, Cost and Quality

Written by a well-respected US health and public policy expert, this book provides a comprehensive exploration of the under-appreciated role of public health policy in the United States’ medical care industry. The book offers an introduction to the fundamentals of health policy, with comparative perspectives from other countries; analysis of major health care programmes, including Medicare, Medicaid, the Affordable Care Act and regulatory programs; reflections on issues around access, quality, cost, and the ethics of provision. By drawing comparisons between the US and other countries, it deepens our understanding of health policy in the US, where it is headed next, and what it might learn from other systems.

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Bristol University Press Copyright Year Collection

Year
Type
Title Count
2025
Frontlist
Full Frontlist
2024-2023
Recent Frontlist
496
2022-2020
Contemporary I
594
2019-2017
Contemporary II
336
2016-2014
Contemporary III
288
2013-2000
Backfile
599
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