The New Towns Taskforce was asked by the UK Government to identify locations and delivery models for a new generation of New Towns to stimulate economic growth and address housing shortages in England. The Taskforce’s final report has recently been published.  What are the implications for economic strategy, appraisal and evaluation?

This is the focus of our latest podcast episode, where we are delighted to be joined by the Chair of the New Towns Taskforce, Sir Michael Lyons.

Sir Michael joins Christine Doel, SQW expert on economic and spatial development at local, sub-national and national scales, and podcast host Joe Duggett,  to explore:

Mission or challenge oriented policies and interventions have become prominent in the past decade in innovation and other policy domains. What are the implications for evaluation, and what different tools and techniques might be needed to evaluate them effectively? This podcast explores this challenge, and reflects on wider trends in evaluation practice, drawing on SQW’s recent presentation at the UK Evaluation Society Conference.

How can Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) organisations become more resilient, sustainable and build their capacity? This is the focus of SQW's latest podcast discussion, which focuses on learning emerging from SQW's evaluation of the Dormant Assets NI Phase 1 Grant Programme. 

The programme provided grants of up to £100k each to 244 VCSE organisations across Northern Ireland. The programme was administered by The National Lottery Community Fund using Dormant Assets monies. This podcast reflects on emerging insights at an interim stage of SQW's evaluation of the programme. It also features first-hand reflections from Jacinta Linden, CEO of Bolster Community, an organisation which received grant funding through the programme. 

What should those involved in economic and social development be watching out for in 2025? In this podcast, experts from SQW consider what the next twelve months might hold for health and social care, employment and skills, local economic growth, and innovation and enterprise.

This podcast, involving SQW in conversation with representatives of the Care Quality Commission (CQC), Equality and Human Rights Commission and the Institute of Regulation, explores how regulators can tackle inequalities experienced by those using, or who need to use, services. The speakers reflect on key findings and implications from the rapid literature review that CQC asked SQW to conduct (with support from The King's Fund Library Service and Dr Tammy Boyce).

The General Dental Council (GDC) is keen to understand and explore the experiences and perceptions of and attitudes towards the GDC of early career dental professionals. This podcast explores findings from SQW’s research study which focused on this topic. The findings have been captured to inform the GDC’s ongoing and future activity with (and for) early career dental professionals, to help meet its regulatory objectives.

Engaging students from traditionally underrepresented groups in knowledge exchange is an important part of widening participation; ensuring that individuals from all backgrounds are able to exploit fully the opportunities afforded by higher education. This podcast explores the role of student-focused knowledge exchange, how it links to broader equality, diversity and inclusion agendas, and provides insights on what works well in addressing barriers to participation.

What are the key themes, policy agendas and factors that will shape economic and social development in 2024? In this podcast, experts from SQW consider what the next twelve months might hold for health and social care, employment and skills, innovation and enterprise, and local economic growth.

Venture capital (VC) plays a critical role in starting and scaling innovative companies, and the scale and growth of VC overall is a success story for the UK. However, diversity in VC investment is low, and there are underlying problems in the market that are specific or more acute for underserved founders including in terms of gender, ethnicity and socio-economic background. SQW recently worked in partnership with the British Business Bank to investigate what works for improving diversity in VC. Podcast host Joe Duggett is joined by Osman Anwar and Imogen Sprackling from SQW to discuss the study, and the evidence-based actions that it identified that can and should be adopted by UK VC firms.

Work experience can help young people make decisions about their futures, ruling in (or out) possible routes after finishing school. However, accessing high quality work experience has tended to remain the preserve of pupils from more affluent backgrounds. In this episode, SQW Director and podcast host Joe Duggett is joined by his colleague, Associate Director Will Millard, and Dr Elnaz Kashef, Head of Research and Policy at the national charity Speakers for Schools. Joe, Will and Elnaz discuss a recent report, written by SQW for Speakers for Schools, examining what international evidence says about best practice in delivering – and the potential impact of – work experience.