The York Policy Engine 2024 Highlights
Introduction
Based in the Research, Innovation and Knowledge Exchange Directorate, The York Policy Engine (TYPE) is the University of York’s policy engagement unit, dedicated to connecting people, ideas, and evidence to drive real-world policy change.
As 2024 comes to a close, we capture below some of the key highlights from our work with colleagues across the University over the last 12 months.
Driving Economic Growth through Science and Technology Clusters Roundtable
In November, TYPE and the government’s Darlington Economic Campus (DEC) jointly hosted a one-day event on ‘Driving Economic Growth through Science and Technology Clusters’. Senior civil servants from six government departments, including a permanent secretary, visited the campus to tour the BioYorkshire Lab and Institute for Safe Autonomy. The delegation then joined leading researchers and senior leaders in the region, including our Vice-Chancellor, Professor Charlie Jeffery, and the Mayor of York and North Yorkshire, David Skaith, for a roundtable discussion on the role science and technology can play in regional economic growth strategies.
The roundtable fostered meaningful, evidence-informed, dialogue on key questions facing regional and national decision makers as the UK government develops a new set of regional growth plans. Participants agreed to revisit discussions over the coming months, reflecting a shared commitment to achieving tangible benefits for the region.
Professor James Chong speaks to the delegates in his lab during the DEC visit
Professor James Chong speaks to the delegates in his lab during the DEC visit
TYPE's Professor of Practice, Mike Baker examining plants in the 'Grow-It York' bio-lab
TYPE's Professor of Practice, Mike Baker examining plants in the 'Grow-It York' bio-lab
The visiting delegates from Darlington Economic Campus on the roof of the Institute for Safe Autonomy building during their visit to York
The visiting delegates from Darlington Economic Campus on the roof of the Institute for Safe Autonomy building during their visit to York
Jo Crellin speaks to Dr Jihong Zhu in the robotics lab in the Institute for Safe Autonomy
Jo Crellin speaks to Dr Jihong Zhu in the robotics lab in the Institute for Safe Autonomy
Jo Crellin, Director General, Domestic and International Markets and Exports at the Department for Business and Trade
“Our presence in Darlington links us into the brilliant research coming out of the region and it's been great to see this innovation in action at the University of York.
"Our modern industrial strategy will focus on the industries of the future and these insights into new technologies will play a critical role in our mission to grow the economy and create opportunities around the country.”
The inaugural York Policy Academy
During 2024 we welcomed a range of speakers to our inaugural York Policy Academy, including: Hannah Davies, the Chief Executive of the Northern Health Science Alliance; Matthew Taylor, Director of the UK government’s Darlington Economic Campus; and, John-Paul Marks, Permanent Secretary to the Scottish Government.
The York Policy Academy is a 9-month programme open to staff across the University which is designed to support the professional growth of participants, deepening their understanding of the policy landscape and equipping them with the knowledge and skills necessary for effective engagement by connecting them with civic and political leaders.
We recently welcomed a new cohort of policy fellows for the 2024/25 Policy Academy for their introductory session. This session included a presentation from Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Enterprise, Partnerships and Engagement, Professor Kiran Trehan who spoke about her experiences of working with policy makers and using research to effect policy change.
"The TYPE Policy Academy...is comprehensive, engaging, and suitable for anyone interested in developing tools for policy analysis and development." - 2023/24 policy academy fellow
"The TYPE Policy Academy...is comprehensive, engaging, and suitable for anyone interested in developing tools for policy analysis and development." - 2023/24 policy academy fellow
Mike Baker CBE, Professor of Practice in TYPE, welcomes John-Paul Marks, Permanent Secretary to the Scottish Government to the York Policy Academy
Mike Baker CBE, Professor of Practice in TYPE, welcomes John-Paul Marks, Permanent Secretary to the Scottish Government to the York Policy Academy
Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Enterprise, Partnerships and Engagement, Professor Kiran Trehan spoke about her policy experiences at the launch of the new policy academy
Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Enterprise, Partnerships and Engagement, Professor Kiran Trehan spoke about her policy experiences at the launch of the new policy academy
A New Mayor and Combined Authority for York and North Yorkshire
2024 saw devolution of power to a new regional layer of government in York and North Yorkshire, with the election of a new mayor and formation of a combined authority for the region - York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority (YNYCA). Underpinning these changes is a 30-year ‘level 3’ devolution deal, including a £500 million investment fund, with a central government mandate to boost productivity and leverage regional economic opportunities.
Through our co-ordination of the York and North Yorkshire node of the Yorkshire and Humber Policy Engagement Research Network (Y-PERN) project, TYPE has worked with the new combined authority since its launch, acting as a connector between university research and policy partners, moving away from fragmented engagement approaches.
This included organising a workshop in the summer that brought together representatives from the YNYCA, North Yorkshire Council, and the City of York Council, with researchers from York and York St John universities leading major projects and initiatives in priority action areas for the new combined authority.
Labour Party Conference Roundtable on Child Poverty
In October, TYPE – together with the Northern Health Science Alliance (NHSA) and Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) – hosted a private roundtable discussion at the Labour Party Annual Conference on the theme: ‘Getting the child poverty strategy right: key lessons for an effective, ambitious approach’. Speakers included Alison McGovern MP, Minister of State at the Department for Work and Pensions, alongside members of the University’s Cost of Living Research Group. TYPE also launched a report summarising key findings from York research at the event.
The national University Policy Engagement Network (UPEN) Conference comes to York
In May, TYPE collaborated with UPEN to host their annual conference at the Guildhall York. The sold-out event, 'Connecting and Collaborating Across the UK Academic-Policy Landscape', saw the Guildhall filled with policy engagement practitioners from right across the UK as they discussed the importance of collaboration, community and action in the realm of policy engagement. Keynote speakers included Kersten England CBE, former Chief Executive of Bradford Council, now Director of Bradford Culture Company, and Hannah White OBE, Director of the Institute for Government.
Launch of the Born in Bradford Centre for Social Change
In December we launched the Born in Bradford Centre for Social Change at the University of York. The Centre builds on the existing partnership between The University of York and the world-leading research programme, Born in Bradford (BiB). To deepen this partnership, the Healthy Livelihoods team based in Health Sciences, and The York Policy Engine are collaborating with BiB in the development of the Centre. The focus of this work will be on accelerating and amplifying the health, social and economic research and impact, generated through the University of York-Born in Bradford partnership. The Centre aims to drive meaningful social change by bridging research and policy in a sustained, collaborative way, including through new internal funding opportunities for the university community.
Dr John Wright speaks at the launch of the Born in Bradford Centre for Social Change
Dr John Wright speaks at the launch of the Born in Bradford Centre for Social Change
Dr Amy Barnes speaks at the launch of the Born in Bradford Centre for Social Change
Dr Amy Barnes speaks at the launch of the Born in Bradford Centre for Social Change
Launch of three new policy engagement research groups
In September this year, we announced plans to establish three new University of York Policy Engagement Research groups with colleagues from the Administrative Fairness Lab, the Institute of Mental Health Research at York, and XR Stories. As a university for public good, the intention of these groups is to harness cross-disciplinary expertise within the institution to target important policy challenges in both the region and on a national scale. TYPE will support the groups to convene colleagues from across the institution, catalysing policy activity and elevating the visibility of evidence generated by the groups and their potential for impact.
These groups will be similar to TYPE’s existing Cost of Living Research group which has proved an effective model of collaboration, drawing together researchers from a wide range of disciplines and catalysing their policy engagement activity around a shared policy problem. Highlights of their work have included roundtable events at political party conferences, hosting visits from government departments such as the Department of Energy Security & Net Zero’s Energy Affordability Evaluation Team, extensive engagement with local and regional policy makers such as City of York Council, and collaborative work with campaigning organisation and think tanks such as the Child Poverty Action Group, Resolve Poverty and the Northern Health Science Alliance.
law and process
Chaired by Prof Joe Tomlinson, Director of the Administrative Fairness Lab, this group will address questions presented by the new Labour government at the intersection of law, process, and policy. York’s expertise in evidence and expert-led analysis of key areas of relevant policy areas, such as housing, infrastructure, social policy, health policy, and social care will all have a contribution to existing and emerging complex law and process challenges.
Children and Young People’s Mental Health
Chaired by Prof Lina Gega, Director of the Institute of Mental Health Research at York, the Children and Young People’s Mental Health policy research group will provide cross-disciplinary evidence-based responses to improve the emotional wellbeing and life satisfaction in children and young people. It will aim to demonstrate to policymakers how mental health care pathways and interventions can become more effective.
creative industries
This group will be chaired by Prof Damian Murphy, Director of XR Stories/XR Network+ It will capitalise on existing links and forge new connections into the creative industries sector. The group will build on opportunities currently being established with the new Combined Authority as it develops a wider creative industries and cultural sector strategy for York and North Yorkshire.
policy school
In June and July we worked in partnership with the government’s Open Innovation Team (OIT) and the University’s Careers and Placements team to deliver a Policy School for taught postgraduate students. Policy School is a work-based learning experience that equips students with practical skills in policy analysis and policy proposal development, preparing them for future roles in public policy. We welcomed students from around 20 different masters programmes to this summer’s event, which was led by expert practitioners from Whitehall.
The Policy School is one of a wide range of supports we receive from our partnership with OIT, who have contributed expert input into a wide range of policy engagement training and capacity building events delivered by TYPE over the past 12 months, as well as providing bespoke advice and masterclasses to specific research teams.
Our next Policy School, for undergraduate students, runs in Spring 2025.
“Policy School not only allowed me to expand my knowledge in civil service work in the UK, but also provided me with practical experience in policy making" - Policy School participant
“Policy School not only allowed me to expand my knowledge in civil service work in the UK, but also provided me with practical experience in policy making" - Policy School participant
Working with colleagues from across the University
Over the course of the past year we had the pleasure of working with colleagues from right across the University, whether it be helping build their policy engagement skills, providing specialist policy engagement support for their projects or helping to convene policy-focused groups and events. We have provided direct professional support and dedicated funding to colleagues from a wide range of fields covering every faculty at York over the past 12 months.
Our training and capacity building activities have supported 289 colleagues since 2023, spanning academic and professional services colleagues from 28 departments/school/centres and 9 directorates, and comprising a total of 1,240 hours of training.
A huge thanks to everyone at the University who has supported us over the past 12 months. We look forward to working with colleagues old and new, and with external stakeholders across the country and beyond, in 2025.
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