From Research to Policy: Academic Impacts on Government, a free, half day conference hosted by the LSE’s Public Policy Group/Impact of Social Sciences Project will be held on Monday, 12th March at the Institute for Government, London.
That government needs effective research on which to base decisions is obvious. But the link between these two groups has been fragile and key disparities can limit how effective academic research can be for policymakers. Common problems raised are around communication, priorities and openness. Much is known about how the policy-making process happens, what actors are key at each stage and how politics can trumps evidence-based policymaking.
With the incentives for academics to engage with government again strengthened through the REF process, this half day conference will examine the ways in which academic research impacts on government and policymaking, how tried and tested methods as well as newer digital technologies are affecting their relationships and the key touch-points where academic expertise can be of most use on major policy issues.
The full schedule is as follows:
1.30pm Registration and light refreshment
2.00pm Introduction from the LSE Impact of Social Science Project Team
Professor Patrick Dunleavy (Chair, LSE Public Policy Group)
Simon Bastow (Senior Research Fellow, LSE Public Policy Group)
2.20pm The Policymakers’ View: How Government Departments can Better Leverage Academic Research
Adam Cooper (Head of Social Science Engagement at the Department of Energy and Climate Change)
Jonathan Portes (Director of the National Institute of Economic and Social Research)
Professor Bernard Silverman (Chief Scientific Adviser at the Home Office)
Neil Wholey (Head of Research and Customer Insight, Westminster City Council
3.30pm Tea break
3.45pm The Academics’ View: Opening up academic work to policymakers
Dr Alan Cann (Leicester University)
Professor Vicky Randall (Essex University)
Professor Stephen Hanney (Brunel University)
Professor Huw Davies (University of St Andrews)
4.45pm Tea break
5.00pm Change, evaluation and future-proofing: Academic interventions in the policy process
Richard Bartholomew (Joint Head of Government Social Research service and Chief Research Officer for the Department for Education)
Professor Edward Melhuish (Director, Impact Evaluation of Sure Start, Birkbeck College London)
Professor Sandy Thomas (Director of the Foresight Programme, Government Office for Science)
6.00pm Drinks reception for all attendees
The conference is FREE to attend but places are limited. To register for a place, please email Impactofsocialsciences@lse.ac.uk. For more information about the Impact of the Social Sciences project click here.
