Email: portico-services@ucl.ac.uk
Help Desk: http://www.ucl.ac.uk/ras/portico/helpdesk
- Honorary Professor
- IOE - Social Research Institute
- UCL Institute of Education
My research career has centered on supporting the use of evidence in decision-making for public policy and has incorporated health services research in Southern Africa, participatory health policy development in the UK, and the use of evidence to inform social policy internationally. I specialize in engaging a wide range of stakeholders in public policy bridging the research, policy and practice arenas. In doing so I work across traditional boundaries working with governments, universities and more. My advice is increasingly sought nationally and internationally on the systematic assessment and integration of evidence to inform policy decisions, with increasing media interest in my work and invitations to present to academic and policy audiences around the world.
My research spans theoretical, methodological and substantive aspects of evidence-informed decision-making, in particular in the field of evidence-informed development.
I have undertaken research on and delivered training in evidence-informed decision-making at practice and policy levels for post-graduate students and government officials. From 2014-2016 I led a DfID-funded programme building capacity in evidence use in governments in Southern Africa. At UCL I contribute to the MSc in Research for Public Policy and Practice, and was involved in the design and delivery of its module on Participative Research and Policy. I have a professional and personal background in Southern Africa. I established and lead the Africa Centre for Evidence at the University of Johannesburg, working to tackle poverty and inequality through the use of research evidence.