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MetroPolis Matters (March 2024) |
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Dear Colleague
We hope you're looking forward to a well-earned Easter break!
We had some fantastic news to start this month, with Dr Lucy Montague (School of Architecture) appointed as a Special Advisor to the House of Lords Built Environment Select Committee on their new inquiry into high streets. Dr Montague was one of the excellent panellists for our Labour and Conservative Party Conference fringe events with Centre for Cities.
Here are a few of our other highlights from March:
- We welcomed MetroPolis' patron Lord Peter Mandelson back to Manchester Met to receive an update on MetroPolis' activity and meet with our Chancellor's Fellows. You can read more here.
- We appointed our fourth Chancellor's Fellow. Dr Seren Griffiths (Arts and Humanities) will be working with the Ministry of Culture of the French Government to develop a policy document for archaeological work.
- We supported Dr Maz Idriss (Law School) on the high-profile launch event for his new research report on honour-based abuse in the courts.
- We funded Dr Krystal Wilkinson (Business School) to share her impactful research on fertility and the workplace at events in Parliament, including the launch of her co-authored White Paper, ‘The impact of fertility challenges in the workplace: The case for action and legislative change,' and also at a roundtable discussion at 10 Downing Street on menopause in the workplace.
- We've been putting the finishing touches on our exciting, upcoming Good Work mini-conference with Shadow Minister for Employment and Social Security, Alison McGovern MP. It's now sold out, but you can join the waiting list here.
- We have been spreading the word about MetroPolis at a number of departmental away days. Want the MetroPolis team to present at your research event? Please get in touch.
Finally, for all you Science and Technology researchers, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) have published their Areas of Research Interest (ARIs). These are the policy questions the department would like to get further research evidence on, and it's an excellent opportunity to share your expertise. You can read the full document here, and get in touch with us for advice on submissions.
Abby
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Read about the recent launch event for the final iteration of the Uncertain Futures research project exhibition at Manchester Art Gallery, and its fantastic impact!
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MetroPolis' patron Lord Peter Mandelson recently met with the MetroPolis team and Chancellor's Fellows. Catch up on their discussions.
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Read about the new report from Manchester Centre for Youth Studies (MCYS) examining the views and opinions of violence from young people in Greater Manchester.
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What could be better than Easter eggs this weekend? Reading two brilliant MetroPolis blogposts!
Professor Ben Kerrane (Business School) examines the UK Government's recently launched Resilience Framework, and asks whether the focus on 'preparedness' means society's most vulnerable get left behind. Read it here.
The first in a series of articles for MetroPolis, the Gender-based Violence team (GBV) (School of Nursing and Public Health) share findings from their recent analysis of Domestic Homicide Reviews, commissioned by the Domestic Abuse Commissioner. Read it here.
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Wednesday 10th April,1.30pm-5.30pm, In-person
A free, solutions-focused mini-conference exploring how to best support people into good work, with keynote speech from Alison McGovern MP (Shadow Minister for Employment and Social Security).
Wednesday 24th April, 12pm-3pm, In-person
An introductory, interactive session led by Professor Chris Fox (Manchester Met) designed to provide an introduction to policy-making and how researchers can engage with policymakers.
Wednesday 8th May, 12pm-2pm, In-person
In this two-hour workshop, Paul Keaveney, Editor from The Conversation, will take you through what The Conversation is - their origins and aims; what they do and why and give you the opportunity to tell them about your latest research and ideas! Interested? Please complete this Expression of Interest form.
Friday 10th May, 9.30am-11.30am, In-person
An interactive workshop led by Sarah Carter-Bell (Knowledge Exchange Unit (KEU), UK Parliament) exploring the role of KEU, the support they offer academics, and top tips for promoting your research to UK Parliament.
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We offer a number of routes for enhancing the policy impact of your research. You can apply for support through the links below. To find out which is the most suitable for your work, or for more tailored support, please reach out to the MetroPolis team.
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The Chancellor’s Fellowship: Our prestigious MetroPolis Chancellor's Fellowship scheme offers high-quality researchers from Manchester Met placements with policy organisations including government departments, charities and think tanks.
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Rapid Funding Scheme: A quick turnaround funding scheme for a range of activities to enhance the policy impact of research including events, travel, networking and (non academic) publications.
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1-1 Policy Coaching: A one-to-one service for support with your pathways to policy impact delivered by Showrunner Communications, who are experts in public policy.
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We're thrilled to introduce Larissa Davies, Professor of Applied Sports Economics (Sport Policy Unit), who recently joined Manchester Met from Sheffield Hallam University. Her research focuses on the societal impact of sport and physical activity, and she works closely with organisations across the sport and physical activity sector, including national agencies for sport, community sports organisations, and charities to inform evidence-based policy and practice.
Her recent projects include:
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A Social Return on Investment study of sport in Wales - A study commissioned by Sport Wales in 2023 to help them identify the contribution of sport participation and volunteering to the wellbeing goals for Wales, identified in the Wellbeing for Future Generations Act. It is being used to help evidence the Sport Wales Strategy, support funding discussions with the Welsh Government, and as part of wider policy discussions.
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A Social Return on Investment study of recreational physical activity in Aotearoa New Zealand - A study commissioned by Sport New Zealand ihi Aotearoa to better understand, demonstrate, and communicate the contribution of recreational physical activity to people's wellbeing, including the indigenous population. Larissa is currently working with Lincoln University (NZ) and Ihi Research to produce guidelines and practical advice for New Zealand organisations wishing to utilise Social Return on Investment (SROI) for evidencing impact and supporting policy.
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International Consensus on measuring the social value of physical activity and sport - Funded by Europeactive and led by King Juan Carlos University in Madrid, this project is striving for greater international harmonisation on defining, quantifying and reporting social value of sport and physical activity. The final goal of the project is to reach expert consensus, from a representative global cohort, on the areas of social impact in physical activity and sport, how we measure them, and the value attributed to each. This process will feed into the production of a series of sector focused toolkits.
Larissa is looking forward to developing and expanding her social value and sport research programme at Manchester Met. If you are interested in finding out more about her research, or collaborating, please get in touch: Larissa.Davies@mmu.ac.uk.
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