HOST Policy Research: Projects and Consultations
Current Consultations
HOST Consortium Research and Workshop Programme
Public spending is being cut, and is likely to continue to be constrained for at least the next few years. This is inevitably having an effect on organisations’ abilities to commission and undertake the research and evaluation they need in order to support policy development, target spending effectively and ensure activities and projects are on course to meet their required outputs and outcomes.
To help support our client base in this time of constrained budgets and policy change, HOST has developed the Consortium Research and Workshop Programme, the consortium elemeht of which was launched in autumn 2010.
Based on HOST’s own expertise and understanding, and guided by the advice of key stakeholders in the fields of skills, education, business support and economic development, during the year a series of research studies is proposed. Interested organisations can choose to “buy in” to one or more studies at a reasonable cost (expected to be less than £5,000 exclusive of VAT). Once a minimum number of organisations (generally three but in some circumstance four) buy into a research project, the work will be undertaken by a selected team of HOST Associates, under the guidance of a HOST Executive or Senior Associate, and steered by representatives of the buying in organisations. Reports are tailored to the needs of individual members in the purchasing group, as well as an overall report shared by the whole commissioning group.
In addition, if your organisation has an identified research need but insufficient budget to undertake the work yourself, you can ask HOST to include that project on the next round of potential consortium projects.
The first selection of Consortium Research proposals was issued in November 2010 and can still be commissioned. You can sign up to be on the mailing list – and at the same time, why not take the opportunity to suggest research topics for inclusion via the expression of interest button?
“I gained more knowledge about how best to gather information for research purposes and the limitations.”