Jack Blumenau joins UK Cabinet Office as a UKRI Policy Fellow

Dr Jack Blumenau, Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science, will take up a 12-month position at the Evaluation Task Force in the Cabinet Office as part of a UKRI Policy Fellowship. The unit was set up following the 2020 Spending Review to improve people’s lives by ensuring robust evidence on the effectiveness of policies and programmes sits at the heart of government spending decisions.

Following the announcement, Blumenau spoke about his enthusiasm for this pivotal role "I am delighted to join the Evaluation Task Force and the Cabinet Office as a UKRI Policy Fellow. Developing rigorous evidence on the effectiveness of public policy is essential for informing decisions on whether policies should be continued, expanded, modified, or stopped entirely. The ETF aims to drive continuous improvement in evaluation in government, and I am excited to contribute to that project. During the Fellowship year, in addition to providing advice and support to government departments on the design of specific policy evaluations, I will also be conducting a research project which investigates how evaluation evidence is used in government, and what can be done to increase the influence of such evidence in policymaking."

As part of the UKRI Policy Fellowship program, Jack Blumenau will work closely with the Evaluation Task Force, which is crucial in enhancing the quality of evaluations conducted within the UK government.

The Fellowship program is part of a broader effort to strengthen the bridge between academia and government, fostering collaboration and the exchange of insights and best practices.

In his new role, Jack will deepen the foundations of evidence-based policymaking, helping make a lasting impact on how government decisions are informed and evaluated in the UK.

To find out more about Jack’s research, head to his website.