We are pleased to announce our fellowship with the Department of Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) has been taken up by fellow Elizbeth Lomas, Associate Professor in Information Governance at University College London. DCMS is currently outlining its plans to refresh its Areas of Research Interest (ARI) document, which will outline the Department’s research needs through a series of questions. Lead by the Department’s Chief Scientific Advisor (CSA), Elizabeth will support this project through external engagement, governance and evaluation of the process. As CAPE fellow, Elizabeth will also ensure that experts, researchers and industry professionals can see and understand DCMS’ … Continued

In our latest episode of CAPEcast, we talk to Ruth Morgan, Professor of Crime and Forensic Science at UCL and World Economic Forum young scientist, about her call to get 1 million scientists doing 100 million hours of policy engagement – that’s two hours a week each for 10% of the world’s scientists. Ruth chats to Sarah Chaytor, CAPE co-lead, about why it’s important to spend time building bridges and networks between science and policy, and how two hours a week can create a momentum for networks to grow and get science into places where it affects decision making. We … Continued

We are pleased to launch our new fellowship with the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) on women’s health taken up by fellow Jane McDermott from the University of Manchester. The Vision for Women’s Health Strategy for England was published in December 2021 and set out a clear ambition to improve the health and wellbeing of women and girls for the future. The forthcoming strategy is due to be launched in 2022 and includes a focus on research, evidence and data. Jane McDermott’s CAPE Fellowship will involve supporting this theme to inform insight and understanding of the critical issues that impact … Continued

There are lots of different ways academics and policymakers are working together and trying to help ensure the best available evidence is properly informing policymaking, but are some ways better than others? Join us on the 7 June (10-11.30) where we will hear from a range of policy partners to share experience and insights on different types of knowledge exchange events in academic-policy engagement. We’ll be hearing from Greater Manchester Combined Authority, Islington Council, Defra and CAPE’s evaluation team. The session will open up to discussion to all attendees to explore what works for academic-policy knowledge exchange. A summary blog … Continued

The factories of the Industrial Revolution ran through several regions of the north, making them once prosperous. But, since the closure of the cotton mills, most of these regions have been economically left behind, which has caused a decline in productivity, health, education and more. Coupled with the 2008 economic crisis and the COVID-19 outbreak, these regions have remained in a status of economic disparity. Oldham is one of those left behind towns, with challenging rates of economic decline. Skill levels are one of the most accurately indicative marks of socioeconomic outcomes. In Oldham, 28.3% of the population have a … Continued

The UK has a productivity problem. The productivity record in the UK has been consistently among the worst in the OECD with output per hour worked growing at a snail pace of 0.5% per year on average between 2008 and 2019. And this productivity problem becomes more challenging when you consider the huge variation within the UK, across devolved nations, regions and cities. That slow nationwide 0.5% productivity growth is double the growth seen in the north-east, while growth stalled entirely in the north-west and declined in Yorkshire and the Humber over the past decade. “The promise to level up … Continued

CAPE is pleased to launch a new 12-month policy fellowship with Newham, taken up by Darren Sharpe, honorary Research Fellow at the UCL Institute of Finance and Technology and Senior Research Fellow and Deputy Director of the Institute for Connected Communities (ICC) based at the University of East London (UEL). Talking about his fellowship, Darren commented – My motivation for applying for the CAPE Fellowship was the ability it afforded me to build meaningful relationships between academy and the public sector to tackle real world policy challenges. Specifically, the project based in the London Borough of Newham will focus on … Continued

Summary | Context | The Policy Challenge | Evidence needs | Delivering the work | Application process | Eligibility | Timeline | About the Policy Challenge Fund | Islington New Deal for Workers Summary CAPE invites applications from staff at UCL and the University of Cambridge as part of the CAPE project to work with Islington Council to develop an evidence base which will underpin the development of a New Deal for Workers in Islington. Funding of between £5k and £15k is available and it is anticipated the research will be carried out between 30 June and 28 October. Respondents … Continued

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 … Continued

Overview Capabilities in Academic Policy Engagement (CAPE) is a research project exploring ways to improve engagement between academics and policymakers in England. In close partnership with the Chief Scientific Adviser’s (CSA) Office at the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), Nesta has launched an immersive, 12-month pilot project that aims to improve the way that evidence and academic expertise is used when policies are created and implemented. “The ability to make a tight, evidence-rich, fact-based, argument which doesn’t waste words or evade hard choices is critical to effective Government.” – Michael Gove Over the last decade, and increasingly … Continued