De Montfort University’s proud record of policy-focused research moved up a level with the establishment of new unit at the university in 2024.
The DMU Policy Unit was established with the aim of delivering research to policymakers in government - locally, nationally and internationally.
Researchers are already working with Government officials, civil servants, and practitioners to help shape research questions, methodologies, and outputs to ensure real-world relevance.
The aim is to bring together diverse expertise from government departments, international organisations, academic networks, and civil society to tackle complex policy challenges that no single institution could address alone.
The unit has current collaborations with the Government ministries at the UK Science and Technology Network, Department of Science, Innovation and Technology, UK Government Office for Science, and the Ministry of Defence.
Professor Mike Kagioglou, DMU’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Planning, Research and Innovation, said the university had a deep commitment to work on real-world research with impact.
He added: “Our record is one we are proud of, but the establishment of this Policy Unit has taken us to a new level in 2024 and we will build on that in coming years.
“The policy unit adds a bridge that ensures our research does not just enhance public knowledge but helps form policy which shapes lives."
DMU researcher Leisa Nichols-Drew presented her findings to Government showing how round-tipped knives prevented less serious injuries in knife crime cases than the use of pointed blades.
The evidence was presented to Dame Diana Johnson, the UK's Policing and Crime Minister, Safeguarding Minister Jess Phillips, and Andy Slaughter MP, Chair of the Justice Select Committee.
Fellow researcher Dr Ismini Vasileiou authored a white paper for Government in which she highlighted that outdated training systems are leaving the UK “dangerously exposed” to cyber-attacks.
Policy-focused research is local, national and international
Researchers have begun work on a pioneering study to investigate how climate change is affecting healthcare system resilience around the world in a project being funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research using international development funding from the UK Government to support global health research.
PThe £3m project brings together academics and communities from around the globe to explore the different ways in which people are responding to environmental challenges that affect hospitals and healthcare providers.
The team are working on the ground in Malawi, Vietnam, Tanzania, and Uganda, each of which faces an increase in extreme weather events associated with climate change and threaten the provision of critical healthcare to millions of people.
DMU’s policy-focused research is strengthened by its long-established Local Governance Research Centre with a track record of work with government institutions, practitioner organisations and think tanks.
It has also worked with individual councils across the country and abroad, as well as with NHS organisations, on policy development in areas as diverse as scrutiny reviews, municipal entrepreneurship, partnership working for the Welsh Government, patient involvement in health, and the accommodation needs of gypsy and traveller communities.
It is an internationally recognised centre of excellence, doing work that investigates localism, place stewardship and the rescaling of local government; local democracy, voice and accountability; and collaboration and innovation in the delivery of public services, notably in housing and health.
Internationally, DMU researchers are collaborating on a £3.5 million project funded by the UK Government’s Ayrton Fund to turn a growing global stock of old electric vehicle parts into affordable renewable energy for sub-Saharan Africa.
They are working in collaboration with universities, governments, and industries from Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Kenya, Rwanda, South Africa and Namibia to address these pressing energy challenges.