2024
Rallying for a more balanced Britain
December 2024
The mayors of Liverpool and Manchester’s ambition for the two city regions to work more closely together was one of the key themes of the annual Heseltine Institute lecture says Susan Jarvis in this Municipal Journal article.
Reflections on the Inequalities and Health Summit: An Urgent Call to Action
November 2024
Heseltine Institute Co-director, Sue Jarvis joined PRAN (Poverty Research and Advocacy Network) colleagues at the Inequalities and Health Summit on 29 October, focusing on addressing the rising challenges of health inequality in Liverpool City Region and nationally. Here she contributes to a blog reflecting on the event.
The ‘Great Survivor’ lives on? Resilience, austerity and devolution in English local government
October 2024
In an article for a special 50th anniversary edition of the Local Government Studies journal, Heseltine Institute research associate Tom Arnold and Matthew McKenna (University of Birmingham) discuss the evolution of resilience as a concept. The article highlights the potential for austerity and devolution to threaten the ‘survivability’ of English local government.
The verdict so far
October 2024
Ahead of the publication of a report by University of Liverpool academics reflecting on the first few months of the new Government, Heseltine Institute Research Associates, Dr Tom Arnold and Dr James Hickson discuss the impact on Liverpool City Region.
Can Labour overcome the problems with British policymaking?
October 2024
Professor Catherine Durose and other leading UK political scientists have written for UK in a Changing Europe asking whether the new Labour government can overcome the problems with British policymaking? Whilst recognising the dominant narrative of government dysfunction, they suggest that a more positive perspective is possible.
Community governance at the hyper-local level
September 2024
Heseltine Institute Co-director, Professor Catherine Durose contributed to a recent Local Trust seminar on community governance at the hyper-local level. Her contribution to this seminar drew upon her work published in the International Journal of the Commons on developing the housing commons.
Three key takeaways from our seminar on community-led neighbourhood governance - Local Trust
Power with Purpose? Further Reflections on Strengthening the Centre of Government
July 2024
Professor Catherine Durose and colleagues respond to the Institute for Government’s Power with Purpose, the final report of Commission on the Centre of Government. Building on existing concerns about the viability of further centralising power in Whitehall. They argue for a more balanced, relational and systemic approach to nurturing strategic capacity in government.
Whatever happened to Freeports? Trade and Local Development in the General Election
July 2024
Dr Tom Arnold, Heseltine Institute Research Associate, and colleagues discuss the future of Freeports in this UK Trade Policy Observatory blog.
English devolution does need a reset but not a top-down fix
June 2024
Professor Catherine Durose, Heseltine Institute Co-Director, and Professor Vivien Lowndes (University of Birmingham) argue that while there is cross-party consensus for extending English devolution, imposing a ‘top down’ structural fix aimed at a ‘final’ reorganisation of regional and local government is not the right approach.
Design for Society
June 2024
Professor Catherine Durose, Heseltine Institute Co-Director and colleagues talk about their recent report, Design and Policy, in this Design for Society podcast. The conversation serves as a fantastic primer for anyone interested in the field of design for policy.
Positive Public Policy – A New Vision for UK Government
May 2024
Professor Catherine Durose, Heseltine Institute Co-Director and colleagues discuss how Positive Public Policy (PoPP) can drive performance improvements, save money, foster early interventions, align networks, and build capacity and momentum for more effective government in this blog published by the Academy of Social Sciences.
Original Ideas Podcast - Feminist Cities
March 2024
Professor Catherine Durose, Heseltine Institute Co-Director, contributes to the University of Liverpool's Original Ideas podcast to discuss her work developing the Liverpool Feminist City Network and how to live more justly in an urban world.
(Re)making social infrastructure for thriving communities
January 2024
Sue Jarvis, Heseltine Institute Co-Director, took part in a recent Local Trust seminar on revitalising communities and the role of social infrastructure.
2023
The challenge now for design in policy
December 2023
A new blog for Public Policy Design from Professor Catherine Durose, Heseltine Institute Co-Director, considers how multidisciplinary policy design teams are changing how public policy is made.
The direction of travel for English devolution – a matter of perspective
November 2023
Dr James Hickson, Heseltine Institute Research Associate, and Dr Jack Newman (University of Manchester), suggest that while English devolution enjoys broad support - as the Autumn Statement highlights - there are differing underlying perspectives on what English devolution is for that need to be addressed to avoid tensions emerging among proponents.
Working with residents to secure their economic future
September 2023
In this article from the MJ Dr James Hickson, Heseltine Institute Research Associate, looks at what can be done locally to support communities through teh cost of living crisis, and examines how to tackle the underlying structural drivers of economic insecurity.
What is institutional misogyny in policing and why does it matter?
September 2023
In this article recently published in The Conversation Professor Catherine Durose, Heseltine Institute Co-Director, and Professor Vivien Lowndes (University of Birmingham) discuss why institutional misogyny in our public institutions matters.
The pros and cons of messy devo
August 2023
In this MJ article Professor Catherine Durose, Heseltine Institute Co-Director, and Professor Vivien Lowndes (University of Birmingham) ask if unfinished devolution may feel like a failure to deliver, can we think differently? Could it open up to diverse voices and deepen place-based democracy?
Local policy in uncertain times
July 2023
In this article, published in the MJ, Dr Tom Arnold, Heseltine Institute Research Associate, discusses the impact of uncertainty on local and regional policy.
Insecure Work Series: Addressing the UK’s insecure work challenge
April 2023
In the Work Foundation Insecure Work series Dr James Hickson, Heseltine Institute Research Associate, argues that the UK's insecure work challenge can't be addressed without first tackling the disproportionate power of employers across the labour market.
What does design do for policymakers?
March 2023
In a UK civil service policy design blog, Heseltine Institute Co-Director, Professor Catherine Durose sets out a vision for future policy design.
2022
Insecure Work Series: Why insecure work is a barrier to levelling up
November 2022
In his first blog in the Work Foundation Insecure Work series, Heseltine Institute Research Associate Dr James Hickson asks what does this insecurity mean for communities, and how can those that are already most vulnerable successfully 'level up' against this backdrop?
Engaging with policymakers: Learnings and reflections on the Heseltine Institute's policy briefing series
July 2022
In this blog for the Universties Policy Engagement Network on engaging with policymakers, Heseltine Institute Research Associate Dr Tom Arnold reflects on some of the learnings from the Heseltine Institute series of policy briefings.
Communities in contol: The catalyst for change
July 2022
In this edited collection for the Fabian Society, Heseltine Institute Co-Director, Sue Jarvis' chapter 'The catalyst for change' explains why we need local authorities and local people working together to solve some of our biggest policy challenges, focusing on what is strong - not what is wrong - in the community to inform place-sensitive policy making.
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