Building a research community in Wales Angela Evans Chief Social Research Officer Welsh Assembly Gov

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Building a research community in WalesAngela
EvansChief Social Research Officer Welsh
Assembly Government
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This presentation

• Why we need a research community
• Social research within WAG
• Ways of working together
• Some quick wins

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Why we need a research community

• The delivery chain/interdependencies
• Making the most of our resources
• Building up the knowledge base
• Raising standards
• Part of a community

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From lone researcher.
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to happy co workers!
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What is government research?

• Statisticians do numbers, economists do costs, so
  what do social researchers do?
• Research and analysis to support policy design,
  delivery and evaluation. In particular, to better
  understand attitudes and behaviour
• Responsible for most of the ad hoc surveys run by
  government, as well as qualitative research.
• The Government Social Research Service

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Social research within WAG

• Office of the Social Research Officer (OCSRO)
  centrally located
• New cross cutting programme and advisory group
• Research teams within policy departments
• Joint working with other government analysts

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Ways of working together

• Strengthening networks
• Improving communications
• Sharing information on projects and programmes
• Collaborative research
• Sharing information on training courses, seminars
  and other events
• Joint provision of training
• Developing professional development opportunities
  eg job shadowing, job swaps and secondments.

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Some quick wins

• Local government representation on Social Policy
  Evaluation and Research (SPEAR) Advisory Group
• Development of Wales-based research training
  opportunities
• Job shadowing/job swaps/secondments
• Strengthening networks
• WAG research web-pages

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• Thank you
• For further information see our research
  web-pages at www.wales.gov.uk/research
• or contact-
• angela.evans1_at_wales.gsi.gov.uk
• richard.thurston_at_wales.gsi.gov.uk