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In a drive to improve efficiency and to increase user participation, local authorities have been set eGovernment targets and priorities by central Government. However, limited resources, conflicting priorities and internal political pressure have resulted in a lack of focus when it comes to implementing such changes and progress towards achieving e-Government has a) been slower than expected and b) had less impact than anticipated.
Research undertaken at Brunel broadened knowledge of e-Government and delivered these benefits:
The research created a body of knowledge that enabled delivery of novel and effective change and is contributing to making the UK a world leader on e-Government.
The 2000 Freedom of Information Act was the subject of post-legislative scrutiny by the Ministry of Justice and the Commons Justice Committee in 2011 and 2012. Both the Ministry and the Justice Committee drew heavily on work by Professor Robert Hazell and colleagues in the Constitution Unit at UCL. The Unit developed the conceptual approach to evaluate the impact of FOI, and provided much of the evidence base. The evidence contributed to the decision that, despite pressure from senior political and Whitehall figures, the Act would not be significantly amended.
Research conducted by Members of the Centre for Local and Regional Government Research (CLRGR) in Cardiff Business School (CBS) concerning the use of targets, performance indicators and external inspection to assess council performance and drive improvement in local services, has had a direct, significant and on-going impact on government policies in England and Scotland. In England, the research informed the Labour Government's decision to reduce the number of national performance indicators. It was also used by the Conservative Party in developing its 2010 manifesto commitment to reduce local government inspections and informed the local government policies implemented by the Coalition Government. In Scotland, the research directly influenced the design of a new inspection methodology introduced by Audit Scotland in 2009.
Alliance research has driven forward a radically different, prevention-based approach to homelessness, internationally. Good practice guidance for Government contributed to a steep decline in `statutory homelessness' in England in the late 2000s (48% in the period 2006-2009) and directly led to the establishment of a national government framework for monitoring homelessness prevention activity. The same study influenced the Federal Governments of Australia and the US and influenced guidance by the US National Alliance to End Homelessness. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation has said of work on multiple exclusion homelessness "its impact on thinking and on practice cannot be over stated". The research has re-shaped the national strategic approach to homelessness prevention in England, is a key underpinning of LankellyChase's new £5M per annum investment strategy and has been used by stakeholders globally, including the European Federation of National Organisations Working with the Homeless and the Council to Homeless Persons in Australia.
This case study centres on research, which had an impact on a major piece of local government legislation. The research was a comparative study of the Local Integrity Systems (LIS) of England, Scotland and Wales. The research was commissioned by Standards for England as part of its 2010 strategic review, which was used by the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) in the creation of the Localism Act 2011. This Act fundamentally altered the English local integrity framework. The research has subsequently been used by major national research projects in corruption in local government.
Policymakers worldwide have struggled to identify the optimum size for units of local government. The received wisdom has been that large councils are more efficient but less responsive to local needs. Researchers at the Centre for Local and Regional Government Research (CLRGR) in Cardiff Business School (CBS) undertook the first comprehensive empirical analysis of the impact of size on the performance of local authorities and studied whether partnerships between councils offer a better way of gaining the critical mass needed to achieve economies of scale than reorganising councils to produce larger organisations. The results directly influenced the policies of Welsh Ministers to encourage collaboration between councils and informed the decision by the Coalition Government to halt local government re-organisation in England.
The Change Management Consortium (CMC) is a collaborative network of academics and organizations seeking to improve knowledge and practice on staff engagement in the strategic implementation of change. Research done at the University of Bath has helped organizational members of the CMC internally to improve employee trust and to build commitment to change. The CMC provides member organizations (including: Aviva, Ernst & Young, GKN, GlaxoSmithKline, Kraft Foods, the Ministry of Defence and T-Mobile) with opportunities to utilise highly relevant research findings in order to create cross-organizational dialogues on improving practice. The broad aim of the research is to move from strategies for change based on alignment with management requirements, to strategies for change informed by employee engagement. One of the CMC members, Her Majesty's Revenue and Custom's (HMRC) provides a specific case example of the benefits of this research, which led to acknowledged improvements in trust and employee engagement.
The Local Governance Research Unit (LGRU) undertook a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) with the Association for Public Service Excellence (APSE), a not-for-profit local government association that provides policy and operational advice to over 300 councils. This partnership informed APSE's strategic policy review, co-producing a new model of the Ensuring Council, which was adopted by its national council, and used to brand and position APSE within local government. Seven evidence-based policy tools were created through the partnership and taken up and used by APSE for consultancy and membership services. Externally, APSE used these outputs to increase its influence over national policy.
Professor Patrick Dunleavy, as Director of the LSE Public Policy Group (PPG), has led a research programme on digital era governance. The results of this programme, through published research, evidence to Parliament and direct consulting to government agencies (including the National Audit Office), have had a significant impact on the UK government's approach to the delivery of government services online. Specifically, the research has allowed the government to develop policies that have facilitated speedier and more effective digital changes, and increased the breadth and quality of public service delivery online.
This case study focuses on the impact of a significant body of empirical, evidence-based research on managing electronic records (ERM) which involved global participation. The impact relates primarily to the behaviour change of information and records professionals in terms of their practice (e.g. strategic planning, service delivery, advice, and education), ways of thinking/decision-making, and their engagement with and/or conduct of research. It is both incremental and transformative in nature. The beneficiaries are practitioners in the UK and internationally. Specific examples are the Chief of Archives and Records Management, United Nations, and those receiving training in six countries.