Research projects

Description This project examined the role of a new kind of institutional actor in crime and disorder reduction, the ‘night-time economy co-ordinator’ (NTEC), appointed in Swansea and funded out of the Home Office Tackling Violent Crime Programme. The NTEC was appointed specifically to inform and co-ordinate responses to alcohol-related violence at night in the city centre…

Aims The aims of the project were to examine the pay statistics for Wales, for 2008 and other relevant years to determine possible reasons for the widening of the pay gap between women and men. Methodology The research methodology was desk based analysis of published data sets, primarily, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE)…

This project, carried out between 2009 and 2011, was set within the context of the safeguarding children policy agenda, particularly the notion that child protection is ‘everybody’s business’. The research aimed to explore every-day safeguarding of children at neighbourhood level, including how safeguarding is seen, experienced and carried out by residents, community leaders and professionals….

The project aimed at a qualitative understanding of local knowledge as enacted in practice through a case study of the street-level management of public space, taking the city-centre and abutting residential streets of Cardiff as a field site. Aims The project has taken pedestrian patrol as a particular focus, and has sought to map and…

The aim of the European Social Fund (ESF) Leavers’ Survey was to assist in assessing the effectiveness of the 2007-2013 ESF Convergence and Competitiveness Programmes in Wales.  The two ESF Operational Programmes (referred to as the Convergence and Competitiveness Programmes) benefiting Wales for the programming period 2007-13 provided just over £1.4 bn1 of investment, with approximately…

The project was designed as an ethnographic study of one place, chosen by the wider Local Knowledge in Context Programme, referred to hereafter as Cwm Dyffryn. Aims The main aims of this project were as follows: To explore the ways in which young people understand the different places within their locality, and the ways in…

Overview This project focused on increasing the engagement between local authorities and the higher education research community in Wales by reviewing current local authority education research capacity and activity in Wales and identifying factors that had an impact on activities, examining existing datasets, and identifying good practice in relation to collaborative research activities.

Summary and Rationale This project explored the (bio)physical and emotional relationships between people and place. By using state of the art galvanic skin response units alongside geographical positioning technology, this project sought to map (bio)physical records of human interaction with their environment. To date, this potential has been explored through and for artistic means. The…

The remit of the WISERD Language, Culture and Identity Research Network is as follows: To bring people together from the academic; public; private; policy and third sectors; with an interest in research in relation to the group theme. To facilitate communication between group members via the website; meetings; social networking; seminars; conferences and other means….

Overview This project was a joint venture with the Institute of Education, Centre for Longitudinal Studies and the ESRC Centre for Research on Socio-cultural change (Manchester University). The main study, funded by ESRC, undertook 180 qualitative interviews with cohort members of the 1958 National Child Development Study. In the first stage of the project WISERD…

The National Equality Panel’s report An Anatomy of Economic Inequality in the UK provided a milestone in our understanding of relationships between people’s characteristics and their financial position. Through detailed analysis of complex datasets, some newly available, it charted in depth how ‘inequalities in people’s economic outcomes – such as earnings, income and wealth – are related…

This research aimed to improve understanding of the implications of introducing a living wage policy in Wales. In March 2009, The Welsh Assembly Government (WAG) commissioned an exploratory study into the implications of introducing a Living Wage in Wales. This report presents the interim findings from the first phase of the analysis. The objective of…

The WISERD training and research capacity building programme was established in September 2009 with two objectives. The first was the implementation of a training programme, aimed primarily at professional researchers within the social sciences, and encompassing colleagues from other disciplinary areas and sectors. The second was to identify, encourage and facilitate networking between social science…

Project Lead: Jennifer Keating The broad aim of this project is to investigate education outcomes for children with additional learning needs (ALN). In particular, I am interested in whether the timing of receiving ALN support has an impact on children’s attendance, exclusions, and attainment. Previous research has shown that children with ALN are more likely…

This research will explore Welsh domiciled students’ decisions and transitions to higher education and their expectations and aspirations following undergraduate study. It will examine the extent to which considerations of employment opportunities in local and national contexts inform decisions and transitions to HE, and aspirations for work, study, and life upon graduation. It will also…

This project will provide an independent assessment of progress the Welsh Government has made towards making Wales a fair work nation and what more needs to be done in promoting this agenda. The research will undertake secondary analysis of existing data sets and collect new quantitative data on aspects of fair work via an online…

This research investigates the importance of place and space to communities, addressing key challenges around social exclusion and isolation, the effects and drivers of poverty, and community cohesion. The research will examine the development and evolution of warm hubs as places of social inclusion and community connectedness within Wales. Whilst prior exploratory research has suggested…

This project will undertake a case study of the Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC) Urgent Appeals mechanism. An Urgent Appeal is a rapid response to a request for support from workers in the garment industry whose rights are being infringed. The project will examine the UA system’s impact in ensuring Freedom of Association (FoA) and other…

One of the core challenges for local economies is the transition to sustainable and green economies. Working with Environment Centre Wales, in partnership with the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, we will conduct mapping and assessments of co-produced innovation in local economies linked to sustainable food and energy production, flooding prevention, responses to pollution, land…

This project will examine the effectiveness of social procurement policies in supporting fair work and initiatives that support vulnerable groups. The research will examine how procurement works in practice and explore the challenges and opportunities of the new social procurement legislation in Wales in supporting the delivery social value and fair work.  The research will…