Giving local government greater powers and control over funding could help drive economic growth beyond London. Professors David Bailey, Felicia Fai and Phil Tomlinson explain why this will require…

In September 2026, David Klemperer wrote a chapter for our Policy landscape 2026 report on the state of political debate around and...

Dr Simon J. Smith at the Royal Danish Defence College and Professor David Galbreath at the University of Bath find that the Nato alliance is concerned about growing threats, but its biggest challen…

Join the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) as they launch their 2026 Areas of Research Interest (ARIs).

The Future of Pensions in an Ageing Society

New research by Dr Joanna Syrda at the University of Bath finds that people with different political values draw the poverty line in different places, shaping how they view the extent of poverty in…

Extending paternity leave to six weeks could deliver net social benefits of up to £12.8 billion annually.

What might the Pensions Commission recommend to improve retirement saving?

Sara Hobolt explores how a political moment can spark lasting divides, and the consequences of this for political attitudes and choices.

Death and bereavement have consequences that extend beyond healthcare. Professor Kate Woodthorpe, Co-Director of the University of Bath’s Centre for Death and Society, explains how a more coordinat…

Reducing food loss in Nigeria requires more than documenting its scale. Ifeoluwa Abulude, Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Institute of Metabolic Science, University of Cambridge, explores op…

Support for women returning to employment after 50 matters and should include help to secure jobs that can rebuild pension security.

As more people are diagnosed with dementia while still of working age, James Fletcher, Assistant Professor of Digital Futures at the University of Bath, explores how workplace adjustments and digit…

The University of Bath, together with the Earth System Governance Project, is proud to host the 2026 Conference. Taking place on 7-11 September 2026.

Find out about the IPR’s work and achievements over the course of this year.

Women remain underrepresented in local government, but getting more women elected is only part of the challenge. New research by Ana Catalano Weeks and Anna Helgøy finds that family-friendly workin…

James Craig reflects on what researchers, universities and public bodies can do to build stronger connections between evidence and policymaking.

In light of Alan Milburn’s interim review and the Government’s plans for addressing NEETs, Farooq Mughal and Aneesa Zafar at the University of Bath examine changing pathways to work, shrinking entr…

Wildfires and critically low river levels are causing significant environmental damage and economic costs across Europe and North America. In the UK, drought was declared across half of England and…

We are pleased to welcome Minsup Kim from the Republic of Korea’s Public Procurement Service as an Institute for Policy Research Visiting Fellow.

Wildfires and critically low river levels are causing significant environmental damage and economic costs across Europe and North America. In the UK, drought was declared across half of England and…

This week marks the 80th birthday of former president Bill Clinton. To mark the occasion, we’re g...

Wildfires and critically low river levels are causing significant environmental damage and economic costs across Europe and North America. In the UK, drought was declared across half of England and…

The Cabinet Office has launched applications to their Government Skills College of Experts, inviting researchers to contribute to projects on six topics.

Hollye Kirkcaldy is a PhD candidate at the University of Bath exploring disability and climate adaptation. In this blog post, she writes about the inclusion of Disabled people and their knowledge i…

Wildfires and critically low river levels are causing significant environmental damage and economic costs across Europe and North America. In the UK, drought was declared across half of England and…

Report of the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee

As cyber threats to museums grow increasingly sophisticated, cultural institutions are having to confront risks that extend beyond the physical security of their collections. James Davenport, Hebro…

Wildfires and critically low river levels are causing significant environmental damage and economic costs across Europe and North America. In the UK, drought was declared across half of England and…

Parents and teachers worry about the number of kids who vape cannabis. But many of them are using something far more dangerous – without even realising it

Does the climate crisis have a soundtrack? It does - when you listen underwater with the right tools. At the University of Bath, scientists led by physicist Professor Philippe Blondel are pioneering r...

Wildfires and critically low river levels are causing significant environmental damage and economic costs across Europe and North America. In the UK, drought was declared across half of England and…

Micheál Martin is a ‘deliverist’ at heart; Harris, by contrast, does things, tells people about them, shows he is doing them – on repeat

The UK Decent Homes Standard, introduced in 2006 to define a basic level of housing quality, needs updating to better reflect the relationship between housing and health. Research by Faye Sanders, …

Applications are open for the Universities Policy Engagement Network’s Participation Fund.

Professor Yixian Sun, a sustainability governance expert at the University of Bath, explains what his new database of China-led climate initiatives reveals about the country’s evolving intern…

This is the official YouTube channel for the University of Bath Institute for Policy Research (IPR). We are a leading public policy research institute, based at the University of Bath. We aim to fur...

A Sunderland community centre shows how mentoring helps young people find work – and why cash benefits are less effective in the long term than tough love and job placements

Listen to Times Radio live for the latest breaking news, expert analysis and well-informed discussion covering the biggest stories of the day.

Our aim is to: Increase public understanding of public policy debates in the UK and beyond. Facilitate the sharing and exchange of knowledge between experts within and outside universities. Overall…

Institute for Policy Research policy brief shows redefining park accessibility could improve health, cut inequalities and unlock billions in NHS savings.

This study examines the efficiency of systemic risk transmission to international oil futures markets by analyzing the dynamic connectedness between three distinct Common Volatility (COVOL) measures:...

Applications are open for the Universities Policy Engagement Network’s Innovation Fund.

The UK needs a new renewed pensions settlement. Professor Nick Pearce explains why.

Ambassadors for Gencore Global directed followers to Telegram channels promoting steroids, prescription medicines and experimental peptides