News and Blog

A history of deprivation in the South Wales Valleys has shaped its young men’s aspirations and views of masculinity, Cardiff University research shows. Dr Richard Gater conducted in-depth interviews with young men aged 13-21 who were living in the Aber Valley, in the borough of Caerphilly. The study explored their transition from school to work…

Over recent years, successive parliamentary committees have recommended expansion of the devolved benefits system in Wales. In 2024, the Welsh Government confirmed that its goal was: ‘A person-centred, compassionate, and consistent approach to the design and delivery of Welsh benefits, underpinned by the Welsh Benefits Charter principles’ – including compassion, equality and human rights. There…

In an exciting new collaboration, WISERD’s UnionMaps data has been integrated into Strike Map,  a worker-powered and funded map of industrial action, which has mapped 230,000 strikes since 2020. The combined functionality of both platforms will allow users to see union strength in the areas where industrial action is happening. Rhys Davies, WISERD co-director and…

The narrative around science education in the UK and globally is often framed around a “leaky pipeline”. While every pupil is required to study science until age 16, many step away from it beyond this point. Reasons for disengagement are multifactored: gender differences, socioeconomic barriers, subject popularity (maths and biology dominate over physics), and now,…

ADR Wales has been awarded almost £26million to continue its ground-breaking work using administrative data to inform public policy and improve lives across Wales. The funding will run from 2026-2031 and was officially announced today by the Rt Hon Mark Drakeford MS during his address to delegates at the ADR UK Conference in Cardiff. Following…

Refugees and asylum seekers in the UK In March this year, over 100,000 people were seeking asylum in the UK. 30% of these people were living in hotels, and all were banned from working and received £7 a day to cover basic needs. The UK has seen over 3,000 applications from unaccompanied children over the…

UKRI Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) has awarded more than £1m to a research team from Swansea and Aberystwyth universities to lead the Welsh Election Study 2026 (WES 2026), a four-year project that will provide high-quality, impartial survey data on political attitudes and voting behaviour in Wales. The collaboration brings together Professor Matt Wall…

On the 30 June and 1 July, the 15th WISERD Annual Conference took place at Aberystwyth University, welcoming over 130 delegates. The agenda comprised 14 paper sessions, two panels, and three symposia and workshops under the theme of ‘Participation and partnership in a time of precarity and polarisation’. For the first time, this year’s agenda…

Our new research examines the contemporary human rights situation of indigenous peoples (IP) in Nepal. By way of context, Nepal has around 26.5 million IP, comprising at least 35 per cent of the total population. Alternatively known as Adivasi, some organisations claim the actual proportion would be closer to 50 per cent if some presently…

From 8 to 11 July 2025, the WISERD Politics and Governance Research Network held a four-day Quantitative Methods Bootcamp at Swansea University. This intensive course was led by Dr Kevin Fahey, Assistant Professor in Politics at Nottingham University and included lectures, practical demonstrations, hands-on practice and group work. Its aim was to provide essential training…