CAPE is pleased to launch a new 12-month fellowship starting this week with the Greater London Authority (GLA), taken up by two fellows, Sarah Jasim, Research Fellow in Social Care at LSE, and Ilias Krystallis, Assistant Professor in Enterprise Management at UCL. The fellowship will provide a dedicated knowledge brokerage function in the GLA to build knowledge networks between GLA staff and academics in London and beyond, bringing together communities of practice and engaging closely with the London Research and Policy Partnership (LRaPP).

London is one of the world’s leading research and higher education capitals, with over 40 Universities and thousands of university researchers, and a breadth and depth of academic and analytical skills that can be brought together to support evidence-based policy development. With significant challenges facing the capital – many of them exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, it is vital that London continues to thrive, and generate new ideas and solutions on how to create more and better jobs, tackle social, economic and health inequalities, and deliver a fairer, cleaner and greener London. 

City Hall is delighted to welcome Sarah Jasim and Ilias Krystallis, London’s inaugural policy fellows – and for CAPE’s support in making this excellent joint appointment. The Greater London Authority, the strategic authority for the capital under Mayor Sadiq Khan, is keen to foster ever closer relationships between London government (including our local authorities) and higher education – and this initiative is a key part of this development. London can only benefit from having its research community fully engaged on its numerous public policy and delivery challenges.

Jeremy Skinner, Assistant Director for City Intelligence at the GLA and Senior Mentor to the Policy Fellows

Based within the City Intelligence Unit within the GLA, the fellowship will also:

• increase the flow of independent academic expertise and evidence on issues of relevance to London government
• support engagement between the GLA, London Boroughs, universities in London and the wider sector to develop an effective evidence base for use in policy development and implementation
• explore options for sustainable structures for academic-policy engagement in London

Speaking of the fellowship, Sarah Jasim said

‘As a senior research fellow at both the Care Policy Evaluation Centre (LSE) and Department of Applied Health Research (UCL) through the NIHR Applied Research Collaboration (ARC) North Thames, I have appreciated the vital importance of working collaboratively with local partners and understanding their policy priorities. I am excited to embark on this CAPE Policy Fellowship, so we can identify and better understand key policy challenges in London, and work with local partners to co-create a knowledge base which supports an increased flow of independent academic expertise and evidence on issues of relevance to the London government.’

Sarah Jasim, Research Fellow in Social Care within the Care Policy and Evaluation Centre at LSE

Ilias Krystallis said,

I am really excited for the opportunity to work with the GLA. The fellowship with help me to better understand the policy environment in practice and to identify pathways to achieving impact. It will enable me to gain access to an important network of policymakers, and allow me to develop close connections within the policy world.

Ilias Krystallis, Associate Professor of Enterprise at UCL

We look forward to sharing our learning from this fellowship as it develops. If you are interested in finding out more contact our UCL CAPE Coordinator Kayleigh Renberg-Fawcett, [email protected]