Dr Matt Dickson is Reader in Public Policy at the Institute for Policy Research (IPR) at the University of Bath. Sue Maguire is an Honorary Professor at the IPR at the University of Bath. Their research on raising the age…
It ain’t what you (can) do it’s the way that you do it
How can devolved governments deliver distinctive policies? Just because a government has the power to do something, it doesn’t always mean that it can actually do it. So what makes the difference? We explored this question in a recently published…
Why diversity in public appointments matters
Owing to the lack of diversity in board membership, many boards in Wales do not reflect the communities they serve, with Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic candidates and disabled candidates being currently underrepresented. The Wales Centre for Public Policy recently…
What might implementation science and knowledge mobilisation mean for What Works Centres?
Implementation science (IS) and knowledge mobilisation (KMb) are just two concepts in the plethora of ideas and terms developed over the last decades in narrowing the gap between knowledge being produced and knowledge being used in policy and practice. Other…
The Coronavirus pandemic – an opportunity for policy entrepreneurs?
It has become something of a mantra that ‘things cannot be the same’ after the Coronavirus pandemic. This is partly because of a growing sense that if, as seems likely, the Coronavirus pandemic will be with us for some time,…
A Conversation on Wales’ Future
On 18th September 2020 we, along with our colleagues at WISERD (Wales Institute of Social and Economic Research and Data), hosted a webinar in which Carwyn Jones MS (former First Minister of Wales), Auriol Miller (Director of the Institute of…
The role of Welsh local government in a post-Coronavirus world
The role that local government plays in the frontline provision of public services is highlighted and accentuated at times of crisis. Councils across Wales have co-ordinated and delivered a range of actions in response to the Coronavirus pandemic, including distributing…
Mobilising Meaningful Connections between Evidence and Practice
At the Wales Centre for Public Policy (WCPP), we are continually reflecting upon our role as a ‘knowledge brokerage organisation’ (KBO). We see ‘knowledge brokerage’ as the practice of connecting researchers and decision makers to help inform public policy and…
How Wales is Understood in the UK is a Problem
It was recently announced that a new BBC TV channel will broadcast in Scotland from 2018. It will have a budget of £30m, roughly equivalent to that of BBC Four. Alongside that, Scotland will receive more money to make UK-wide programmes. Perhaps…
Engaging matters: making sure the public have a voice in the future of Welsh health and social care
This blog draws on a recent Wales Centre for Public Policy (WCPP) report Public engagement and ‘A Healthier Wales’, co-authored by Paul Worthington, Sarah Quarmby and Dan Bristow from WCPP. The report considers how the commitments to public engagement in…
