“I’m not a broker anymore, I’m not selling you anything, I’m a Knowledge Mobiliser” – Professor Dame Angela McLean
Days after UPEN secured £5 million in funding from Research England, ESRC, and UK Research and Innovation, the Rik Medlik Building at Surrey University was electric with anticipation for the 2025 UPEN conference. With record attendance, the energy was palpable as delegates gathered to tackle three fundamental questions:
- How do we evaluate the impact of academic evidence on public policy?
- What methods can we use to gather impact?
- How do we measure the impact of knowledge mobilisation within policymaking?
As an evaluator, policy analyst, and ethnographer, these questions resonated deeply. Throughout my career, I’ve witnessed research’s profound impact on communities, making questions about ethical research practice and intended outcomes increasingly crucial.
Setting the Scene
Professor Dame Angela McLean’s opening keynote perfectly captured the conference’s spirit. Her message was unequivocal: UK Government Department Areas of Research Interest (ARIs) are working. The appetite exists, and researchers must continue building relationships with the Chief Scientific Adviser (CSA) network, fostering conversations, and creating space for dialogue, connections and collaborations.
Her passion for knowledge exchange was inspiring. She acknowledged that while engagement isn’t easy, policymakers desperately need help finding good evidence. Most importantly, she positioned us as experts who can bridge the gap between questions and answers – a role that requires us to keep engaging, showcasing expertise, and asking the right questions to ensure strong ‘good’ delivery.
Building Connections
The showcase exhibition provided an excellent networking opportunity, immediately putting newcomers at ease. Highlights for me included Y-PERN demonstrating that policy evaluation is achievable through theory of change work, CECAN offering tools and resources for quality policy research, and Overton winning hearts (and stomachs!) with their delicious jellybeans.
Deep Dive into Evaluation
Workshop One on “Evaluation of Knowledge Exchange Activity” proved invaluable. Led by Professor Katherine Oliver (School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine), Bridget Sealy (Y-PERN and Sealy Associates), and Benjamin Hepworth (Ministry of Justice), the session explored major policy evaluation processes.
The workshop sparked fascinating debates about ARI definitions, quality markers, and the nuanced requirements from both inquirers and responders. However, Professor Oliver’s closing observation was most striking: ARIs possess flexibility to combine with different knowledge exchange activities depending on desired outcomes and value propositions. As evaluators, we must understand how different activities relate to stated outcomes.
This left us with a critical challenge: with such diverse tools available, how do we ensure evidence remains both robust and accessible?
Parliamentary Perspectives
The final session featured UK Parliament Thematic Research Leads (TRLs), providing insights into how academic research informs policymakers and shapes parliamentary scrutiny. Their successful interdisciplinary engagement model was particularly impressive, with growing appetite for further collaboration demonstrating the work’s impact.
Looking Forward
Leaving the sun-drenched Rik Medlik Building, I felt the anticipation that comes from standing at possibility’s threshold. As UPEN grows and develops its sector role, as academic-government collaboration opportunities multiply, this work feels both purposeful and overdue.
I’m reminded of my undergraduate days ten years ago, sitting in seminars listening to colleagues’ field research while watching department heads fight fatigue. I felt overwhelming injustice that rich data wouldn’t extend beyond that room. The 2025 UPEN conference represents everything I hoped for then – a space where research transcends academic boundaries to create real-world impact.
As Dame Angela McLean beautifully articulated, we are all knowledge mobilisers. The question isn’t whether we have the tools or appetite for change – clearly, we do. The question is how we’ll use this momentum to ensure academic evidence genuinely shapes the policies that matter most.
The future of evidence-informed policymaking feels brighter than ever, and I’m excited to see how these possibilities unfold.
