Blog Post Tackling Inequalities We need to talk about procurement On 4th February we published a major new report on procurement. Beyond contracting: public service stewardship to maximise public value argues that politicians and chief executives need to use procurement strategically to maximise economic, social and environmental outcomes for their local communities, rather than just going for the lowest cost option. The launch event with […] Read more Topics: Economy February 26, 2019
Blog Post Community Wellbeing How do we tackle loneliness? Evidence on supporting younger and older people This is the second in a three-part blog series on loneliness and isolation in Wales. The first article can be read here, and the third here. Here, we discuss possible ways to tackle loneliness in younger and older people, given the available evidence. With the Welsh Government planning to launch its Loneliness Strategy by the […] Read more Topics: Local government Loneliness February 19, 2019
Blog Post Environment and Net Zero Is the future of the economy threatening local taxation? This is the second of our guest blogs expanding on some of the wider tax policy questions that couldn’t all be fully explored within the parameters of our Welsh tax base research last year. Here, Hugo Bessis of the Centre for Cities considers the impact of the rise of automation and high street retail closures […] Read more Topics: Economy Local government February 14, 2019
Blog Post Community Wellbeing Growing the Welsh tax base through business rates: risks, rewards and trade-offs It has been six months since we published our report examining the risks and opportunities of fiscal devolution to the Welsh tax base. Our discussions with tax policy colleagues in the Welsh Government and experts and academics from across the UK threw up plenty of issues which couldn’t all be fully explored within the parameters […] Read more Topics: Economy Local government February 7, 2019
Blog Post Community Wellbeing Beyond contracting: public service stewardship to maximise public value In this blog, John Tizard, co-author of our latest report Beyond contracting: public service stewardship to maximise public value, introduces some key issues and arguments. This is part of our series on public procurement – find out more here. The public sector in Wales spends over £6bn per year on the procurement of services, works […] Read more Topics: Economy Local government February 5, 2019
Blog Post Community Wellbeing What does the evidence say about loneliness in Wales? This is the first blog in a three-part series on loneliness and isolation in Wales. Part two is available here, and part three is available here. In this blog, Suzanna Nesom discusses what we know about loneliness as a concept, and what the evidence says about loneliness in Wales. The Welsh Government has committed to […] Read more Topics: Local government Loneliness January 31, 2019
Blog Post Tackling Inequalities Preventing youth homelessness in Wales To help develop our knowledge about what is currently being done in Wales on the prevention of youth homelessness, I was commissioned by the Wales Centre for Public Policy to carry out an initial mapping exercise of what interventions are in place in each of the 22 Welsh local authorities. In order to structure the […] Read more Topics: Housing and homes Poverty and social exclusion January 11, 2019
Blog Post Community Wellbeing Collaborative procurement in Wales: Pulling together… but in what direction? Here at the Centre, we’re examining the evidence on public procurement, and aiming to publish some succinct reports in early 2019. Collaborating on procurement – joining forces to pool and strengthen in-house expertise or to access economies of scale – is an emerging theme. So, as part of our research process, we’ve been building a […] Read more Topics: Community collaboration Economy Local government December 20, 2018
Blog Post Environment and Net Zero What’s being done across the world to tackle air pollution? This blog draws on the Wales Centre for Public Policy report, Air quality strategies and technologies: A rapid review of the international evidence, co-authored by Sarah Quarmby, Georgina Santos and Megan Mathias and explores what we know about different ways of cleaning up the air we breathe. What is air quality? Air quality is measured […] Read more Topics: Health inequalities Net Zero December 10, 2018
Blog Post Tackling Inequalities 5 Things You Should Know About Gender Equality in Wales The Wales Centre for Public Policy is currently contributing to the Welsh Government’s Gender Equality Review, announced by the First Minister earlier this year with the aim of making Wales a world leader in gender equality Following our report in the summer on International Policy and Practice, we recently held a seminar for members of […] Read more Topics: Diversity and inclusion December 5, 2018
