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The impact was on public, professional and policy discussion of the role of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in British society and politics. Specifically:
(a) Preservation and conservation practices: the research impacted library and museum practices through the deposition of several archives of NGOs now accessible to a broader public, and to a campaign to encourage NGOs to make further depositions.
Adrian Leftwich's work has made a decisive contribution to changing the way that decision-makers understand `politics' in development policy and practice. Specifically, Leftwich contributed to a step change in the UK Department for International Development's (DfID) approach to the governance agenda, from a narrow technocratic focus on administrative capacity—formal structures and rules—to a much broader conceptualisation of governance as a political process. His `thinking and working politically' framework, encompassing leadership, coalitions and political economy analysis, has shaped the thinking, not only of DfID, but also the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) and major international NGOs.
Research undertaken at the University of Manchester (UoM) confronts deficits in social policy in sub-Saharan Africa, emphasising the promotion of state capacities for the delivery of social welfare, The research has engaged with users (2003-present), and has contributed to demonstrable policy shifts towards strengthening social welfare systems. As a result, UNICEF, alongside donors such as USAID/ PEPFAR, are now placing an increased emphasis upon the importance of strengthening state social welfare systems, with less emphasis the on role of NGOs. The research also contributed to a renewed prioritisation on developing capacity for the implementation of social policy within the African Union Social Policy Framework (2008).
A major element of the Welfare Reform Act 2012 is the introduction of Universal Credit, which is widely recognised as the most radical reform of the UK social security system since the 1942 Beveridge Report. Universal Credit will be rolled out nationally from October 2013 and affect the lives of millions of working age people. Universal Credit recipients who are working will be the main beneficiaries receiving more than under the previous Tax Credit arrangements (which are being abolished). Increased payments to claimants will amount to over £2bn with 3.1 million households benefiting (according to the government formal Impact Assessment). The work of the Social Policy Research Unit (SPRU) at the University of York (particularly the contribution of Sainsbury and Weston) has had a demonstrable impact on the development of the ideas and policies of both previous Labour administrations and the current Coalition government. Sainsbury's seminal ideas on the single working age benefit can be seen as having laid the foundations for Universal Credit.
This case study describes contribution to public knowledge, discussion and debate about social security policy, including contributions to policy development. It is a process where research develops through from engagement and interaction, and engagement and interaction in turn prompts the production of research. This research engagement with the field and authority has prompted a recent change in legislation affecting Scotland.
Professor Jonathan Wolff at UCL has produced several important monographs which are aimed at both researchers and students, including An Introduction to Political Philosophy (1996 and 2006) and Ethics and Public Policy (2011). These books continue to have great influence on the way in which political philosophy is taught, and are widely used in schools and adult education, as well as within Higher Education Institutions. Curricula throughout the world are designed around them. Both books, but particularly An Introduction to Political Philosophy — which exists in English and in many translations — have had a profound effect, both in terms of adoption, and in the response from instructors and students.
There is strong policy interest in more effective ways to increase citizen engagement, including time contributions and the donation of goods. Research undertaken at the University of Manchester (UoM) has stimulated debate around localism and the `Big Society', directly influencing central and local government policy. Specifically, the research has shaped debates on the role of `nudge' mechanisms in the generation of the `civic goods' that underpin effective public service delivery, with impact demonstrated in two ways. Firstly, documenting and mobilising civic participation (volunteering and donations) through the use of innovative field experiments, including Randomised Controlled Trials (RCTs). Secondly, demonstrating an influence on policymakers through clear illustrations of the rigorous and scalable methodologies that underpin the research.
The Nordic Noir Crime Fiction Book Club (NNBC) responds to the current intense UK interest in Scandinavian crime writing and television. It provides a face-to-face and online community of fans of Nordic crime fiction in English in which research on the politics, history, language, and visual and literary culture of the Nordic welfare states stimulates and informs public understanding of and engagement in the Nordic culture underlying crime fiction and television. NNBC also facilitates collaborative involvement and public understanding of broader societal issues and challenges pertaining to crime fiction and television, including politics, language, identity, violence, the publishing and television industries, reading practices, translation, and visual culture.
Publications analysing political mobilisation during the English revolution, widely disseminated through sales of the book God's Fury, England's Fire, reviews, and in public engagement activities, have shaped public understandings of how popular support for radical politics can be mobilised. The book's central arguments have made a significant contribution to contemporary political and social debates and have shaped the work of programme makers and other creative artists. The widespread use of the book in teaching in higher education and at A Level in the UK and internationally means that it has played a central role in shaping student understandings of this key period of English history.
Louise Haagh has played a major role in putting alternative welfare and employment policy options on the mainstream agenda. Haagh's comparative empirical research on basic income (BI) provides support for an approach to welfare that gives citizens unconditional, universal economic entitlements and multiple opportunities, through education, work, and social care, to acquire the economic stability needed to help themselves. Haagh has promoted this approach through a portfolio of international engagement with policy makers, international organisations and NGOs: most notably, the Council of Europe's `Rights of People Experiencing Poverty' project and its major guide Living in Dignity in the 21st Century: Poverty, Human Rights and Democracy; and her work with the Government of Canada's National Council for Welfare.