Peter O’Neill (Alliance for Useful Evidence) and Prof Sally Shortall (QUB) Making better use of evidence is essential if public services are to deliver more for less. Central to this challenge is the need for a clearer understanding about the standards of evidence that can be applied to research informing public policy. The Civil Service … Read more
Dr Muiris MacCarthaigh (QUB) The financial crisis faced by political executives across Europe and the wider world has had a dramatic effect on public administration. In attempting to re-balance budgets, governments of varying political hues have adopted strategies to restructure the size and cost of the state bureaucracy. A common theme of such restructuring has … Read more
Dr Denise O’Hagan, (QUB) A National Registry of Self-Harm has been operating in the Republic of Ireland since 2002. Under the Northern Ireland (NI) Suicide Strategy a Registry of Self Harm was piloted in the Western Health & Social Care (HSC) Trust area from 2007. The Registry was then implemented across all five HSC Trusts … Read more
Dr Karen Galway (QUB) While substance misuse is a recognised risk factor in suicide, relatively little is known about the relationship between lifetime misuse and misuse at the time of suicide. It is widely assumed that many cases of suicide, particularly in young people, are associated with illicit drug use. However an analysis of suicides … Read more
Dr Jonny Byrne, Prof Cathy Gormley-Heenan and Dr Duncan Morrow (Ulster): In May 2013, the Northern Ireland Executive published a new community relations strategy document, ‘Together: Building a United Community’, which set itself the ambitious target of removing ALL interface barriers (peace walls) by 2023. Peace walls and interface barriers designed to secure communities through … Read more
Dr Gavin Duffy and Prof Tony Gallagher (QUB): This presentation is based on a three-year study by Duffy and Gallagher (2014) from the Sharing Education Programme at the School of Education, Queen’s University Belfast. The study contextualised shared learning between pupils and collaboration between teachers and leaders within a shared education partnership, comprising of eight … Read more
Dr Duncan Morrow (Ulster): Sectarian divisions from both the politics of church and state and mass immigration from Ireland have left their mark on Scottish as well as Irish society. In 2012, the Scottish Government established an Advisory Group on Tackling Sectarianism to investigate the modern legacy of sectarianism and to advise the government on … Read more
Prof NJ Hewitt & Dr P Griffiths (Ulster): Wind energy is the large scale renewable energy electricity provider of choice with a marriage of a mature cost effective technology and an excellent wind resource in Northern Ireland. However, given the variability of wind energy, its availability does not always coincide with our electricity needs. Furthermore … Read more
Prof Barry Quinn, Ms Lynsey McKitterick, Dr Adele Dunn and Prof Rodney McAdam (Ulster): This presentation focuses on the effectiveness of policy for SME (small and medium enterprises) innovation in the food chain. Specifically it provides evidence-based recommendations for policy-makers arising from research into the effectiveness of the policy and support environment in fostering innovation, competitiveness … Read more
Dr Ruth Hunter and Dr Mark Tully (QUB): The prevalence of physical inactivity is rising and the inexorable slide to more inactive lifestyles offers worrying projections of future prevalence of obesity, morbidity and mortality. National guidelines recommend that adults do at least 150 minutes of physical activity per week. However, evidence shows that only 8% … Read more