Video transcript

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NARRATOR: Have you ever wondered how it all fits together? We did. The first and only initiative of its kind – we improve how governments and academics work together – a UK and Ireland comparative policy research and knowledge exchange initiative, understanding and researching policy differences across our nations.

JOHN DARCY: We feel this is really important given the challenges facing the world at the moment, that politicians and policymakers and academics can learn from each other.

NARRATOR: At PolicyWISE, we are ready to help you.

KESI MAHENDRAN: I think comparative policy analysis is when you work across different contexts. If you're working in government and you've been asked to develop the evidence base for a policy, you might be asked to work relatively quickly. And yet, in your first scan, you realise that the evidence base is pretty sketchy.

NARRATOR: We create space for you. We share ideas and insights with you. We help policymakers focus on evidence-informed solutions.

KESI MAHENDRAN: And the great thing about PolicyWISE is it acts as an intermediary between those people who build research, and then that step where you would understand research is evidence, and then the building of an evidence base.

NARRATOR: We aim to be forever curious, connected, and collaborative in all our work – independent non-partisan, committed to excellence, and making an impact, ambitious for citizens and supporting policymakers across the nations of the UK and Ireland. So, what do those in governments and parliaments think?

STEPHEN ALDRIDGE: I believe it offers real potential benefits to policymakers, for academic enquiry, the chance to explore across countries and devolved governments and administrations, what is happening in terms of economic, social, and public service performance to improve understanding of the key drivers of improved outcomes and to learn from different policy approaches and innovations.

NARRATOR: Here are our key initiatives – rapid policy analysis and briefings, connecting research and researchers to policymakers, training for both researchers and policymakers, unique comparative policy guides, cross-nation and government knowledge exchange. And we know that these are needed.

HANNAH JOHNSON: I think this ultimately leads to better decisions being made, based on a full understanding of the evidence of how things have worked in real-life situations in different places. I think knowledge exchange is incredibly important in this process because this sort of research and analysis needs to be in the hands of those decision makers and not just sitting on a shelf.

KESI MAHENDRAN: Before I became an academic, I was a policy analyst and researcher in the Scottish government. I felt strongly at least that there was a need for a think tank or initiative, standing in a centre point and bringing in evidence from these different national contexts, and providing a resource to people who were like me and sitting in government offices having to pull together an evidence base. So that was one of the reasons why I became involved.

NARRATOR: Sign up to our newsletter. Get in touch about your research needs and look at our training options.

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