Sciencewise Community of Practice September meeting -including Jill Rutter presentation

Managed by AEA group on behalf of the Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS)www.sciencewise-erc.org.uk 1

Community of Practice Meeting19 September 2013

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Managed by AEA group on behalf of the Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS)www.sciencewise-erc.org.uk

SIMON BURALLHEAD OF DIALOGUE

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What is public dialogue?

Public dialogue is defined by the Sciencewise-ERC as a ‘two-way’ conversation between policy makers and scientists on the one hand, and the public on the other. It aims to find out the public views, which may require legislation.

It does not seek to find out people’s views on a range of policy options that have already been developed. Rather, it aims to find out people’s hopes, fears and aspirations about potential new areas of science and technology.

It does this by taking place ‘upstream’, in other words before key policy decisions are made, to ensure that the outcomes are able to have some influence and make a difference.

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Sciencewise

The Sciencewise-ERC is funded by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

The programme’s aim is:

“to improve policy making involving science and technology across Government by increasing the effectiveness with which public dialogue is used, and encouraging its wider use where appropriate [to ensure public views are considered as part of the evidence base]”

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JILL RUTTER INSTITUTE FOR GOVERNMENT

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Civil Service Reform and Dialogue and Engagement: threat or opportunity

Jill Rutter19 September 2013

Context: a challenging five years

• Biggest ever fall in civil service numbers

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Departmental headcount reductions (thanks IFG!)

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• Biggest ever fall in civil service numbers • Significant reductions in departmental budgets

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Scale of budget cuts since 2010- 11(thanks IFS!)

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• Biggest ever fall in civil service numbers • Significant reductions in departmental budgets• 1st peacetime coalition government since World War Two • A programme for government committed to major reform• Against a background of the deepest recession since the

Depression • And increasingly fractious relations between Ministers and their civil

servants

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Within that, there is increasing concern at the quality of policy making

Ministers concerned about civil servants:– Weak on innovation – Don’t learn from past evaluations – Poor at joining up – Not on top of current thinking and poorly connected to external idea

generators– Driven by own agenda, not Ministerial priorities – Can’t do implementation

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Within that, there is increasing concern at the quality of policy making

Civil servants think Ministers: – Driven by need for instant response– Not open to constructive challenge – Do not want to wait for evidence – Prefer listening to special advisers than officials – Don’t understand implementation

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The government launched its civil service reform plan in June 2012

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And so one focus of civil service reform plan is on improving quality of policy making

Key headlines:

Open policy making • Public input through crowdsourcing• Policy labs• Involving delivery experts early in policy process• X-departmental teams • Web based policy platforms • Open data

Contestable policy making • 3 year experimental Contestable Policy Fund

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And emphasis on better use of expertise and evidence

Establishment of network of “What Works” centres:• Building on NICE and Educational Endowment Foundation• Looking at early years, crime, ageing and local economic growth;• Joint funded with ESRC

Permanent Secretaries to take responsibility for quality of evidence base

• Goldacre review of Dept for Education

Wider use of RCTs in government• Work of Behavioural Insight Team

Strengthened horizon scanning

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The government used to have a view of a very logical policy process

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We think the real world of policy making looksmore like this

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So – what does all this mean for dialogueand engagement?

There are both opportunities and threats in the current situation …

In groups, we would like you to discuss how you see these playing out in your areas from your perspective

And what are the 3 most important things you can do to exploit the opportunities that may be opening up.

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In table groups

Use Pink Post It notes for threats

Use Green Post It notes for opportunities

Use Yellow Post It notes for actions

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PLENARY DISCUSSION

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Support provided by Sciencewise

Specialist information and guidance Dialogue and Engagement Specialists (DES) Government Guiding Principles on public dialogue

Awareness raising

Training

Mentoring

Community of Practice

Co-funding of public dialogue projects

Information resources via www.sciencewise-erc.org.uk e.g.

Quarterly newsletter on Sciencewise activities Dialogue bulletin and papers on current practice in public

dialogue Case studies of public dialogue projects

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http://www.sciencewise-erc.org.uk/cms/assets/Uploads/Project-files/Sciencewise-ERC-Guiding-Principles.pdf

http://www.sciencewise-erc.org.uk/


Upcoming events

23 October, 14:00-15:30

Open Data and Dialogue Webinar

https://sciencewiseopendata.eventbrite.co.uk

21 November, 12:00-14:00

CoP Meeting –London

Agenda to be agreed

https://sciencewisenovmeeting.eventbrite.co.uk

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https://sciencewiseopendata.eventbrite.co.uk/

https://sciencewisenovmeeting.eventbrite.co.uk/


Contact us

Sciencewise website

www.sciencewise-erc.org.uk

Sciencewise Helpline

0870 190 6324

[email protected]

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Closed Community of Practice Meeting

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EDWARD ANDERSSONDIALOGUE MANAGER

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MARILYN BOOTHBIS DIGITAL ENGAGEMENT

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Digitally enabled open policy making?

• Listening• Engaging in online communities and forums• Building relationships and keeping talking • Consulting

– Improving the quality and depth of responses by responding to comments/questions now - not trying to understand public’s responses in 3 month time as part of analysis

• Not always building a website: going where the conversations are• Not always about consultation?

What’s happening in BIS?

• All departments have digital strategy

• Ours commits us to encouraging online listening, and open policy making

• Building expertise through:– Training– Digital surgeries– Case studies– Digital speakers from outside Govt– Digital Fortnight 2013

Digital Fortnight

• Stressing the link to open policy making & career development

• Introducing our “digitally-enabled” policy guidance (beta)

• Workshops, guest speakers, video testimony

• Showing it’s more than “glitter & Twitter”: about sustained engagement

• Encouraging levels of support

• Reaching out to new people

• Blogging evaluation

What works?

• Focus on Enforcement: – increased depth of evidence from real people

• Consumer Bill of Rights– Simplifying language for increased reach – Real time responding

• Community Buying & HE White Paper– Working with existing forums

• The perfect example hasn’t happened yet• See BIS Digital blog for case studies

http://discuss.bis.gov.uk/bisdigital/category/case-study/


SUZANNAH LANSDELLDIALOGUE AND ENGAGEMENT SPECIALIST

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What support can the Sciencewise DES provide to policy makers?

• Explore issues suitable for public dialogue – be a sounding board

• Give guidance, mentoring and training• Run awareness sessions for departmental staff on the

public dialogue• Support the preparation of business case for public

dialogue (to apply for Sciencewise funding) • Selection of dialogue contractors• Management of Oversight Groups • Support the department, contractors and stakeholders in

delivering a dialogue to meet the project needs and maximise impact

• Enable reflection on project learnings to take forward for the future.


Questions to consider

What support should Sciencewise offer civil servants around public dialogue?

PINK POST IT

What future topics would you like to see covered in Sciencewise events?

GREEN POST IT

How should the Community meet? -Face to face, webinars and/or a digital space?

YELLOW POST IT

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21 November Meeting

Do you want another meeting?

What should we cover? • Training on engagement• Case study presentations• Action learning/hands on support• Lectures/presentations• Something else?

Should the Community of Practice remain a closed space for civil servants or be open to all with an interest in dialogue?

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PLENARY DISCUSSION

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Upcoming events

23 October, 14:00-15:30

Open Data and Dialogue Webinar

https://sciencewiseopendata.eventbrite.co.uk

21 November, 12:00-14:00

CoP Meeting –London

Agenda to be agreed

https://sciencewisenovmeeting.eventbrite.co.uk

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https://sciencewiseopendata.eventbrite.co.uk/

https://sciencewisenovmeeting.eventbrite.co.uk/


Contact us

Sciencewise website

www.sciencewise-erc.org.uk

Sciencewise Helpline

0870 190 6324

[email protected]

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Support available after event

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Technology

Sciencewise Community of Practice September meeting -including Jill Rutter presentation