We’re delighted to announce the launch of the Government-University Pairing Scheme, which is delivered in partnership by the Universities Policy Engagement Network (UPEN) and the Government Office for Science (Go-Science).
Building on the success of the CAPE (Capabilities in Academic Policy Engagement) programme and lessons learned from previous initiatives, the scheme is designed to strengthen connections between policy and research by pairing professionals who work at the interface of evidence and decision-making. These knowledge mobilisers, whether based in policy roles or research institutions, play a vital role in translating between academic research and public policy.
The scheme attracted over 100 applications from across the UK, and we are pleased to confirm that 26 cross-sector pairs have now been matched, representing a wide range of UK policy organisations and higher education institutions. While we couldn’t match everyone this time, the level of interest tells us that there is a real appetite for more practical peer to peer learning opportunities of this kind, which is something we will look at as part of UPEN Programmes going forwards.
Over the coming 12 months, participants will:
- Share challenges and insights from their respective contexts
- Explore organisational approaches to policy engagement
- Build relationships that foster long-term collaboration and understanding
- Throughout the year, UPEN and the Government Office for Science will be supporting participants and capturing learning to inform future work in this space.
We thank all applicants for their interest in the scheme and extend our appreciation to the many organisations who supported and encouraged participation.
