6994posts
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Ventilating classrooms to reduce the spread of Covid 19 doesn’t mean pupils need to be cold – here’s why
Good ventilation prevents the virus hanging in the air and infecting people. Many areas of schools are already well-ventilated with plenty of air movement but we want to help schools identify where and when ventilation can be improved.
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How the National Tutoring Programme is helping young people catch up on education they missed because of Covid-19
The National Tutoring Programme (NTP) is helping pupils across the country catch-up on missed time in school. It gives pupils access to one-to-one or small group teaching with specialist tutors. To date, over 300,000 tutoring courses began last term, on …
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Inside Policy: Money Matters
Since its launch in September 2018, 264,000 people have opened a Help to Save account giving them a money buffer to keep them going through tough times. Research by the Money Advice Service in 2016 revealed that four in 10 …
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Adrian Saunders, Senior Advisor for Fisheries Incidents and Compliance, reflects on a year of enforcement activity
Adrian Saunders, Senior Advisor for Fisheries Incidents and Compliance, reflects on the fisheries enforcement work of the Environment Agency in 2021, and the partnerships that help us to crack down on illegal fishing to protect our fisheries. It has been …
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Introducing User Research in Content Design
We’ve read many stories of meeting user needs in the development of digital services, but what do you do when the user researcher on your team also has accessibility needs? We spoke to Maz, an autistic user researcher, who joined …
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DVLA customers reap the benefits of using their online services over Christmas
DVLA Service Manager Anthony Bamford, reveals how many customers used some of our online services over Christmas and the New Year.
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Pharmacovigilance Inspection Metrics April 2020 to March 2021
The MHRA GPvP Inspection Metrics report for the period April 2020 to March 2021 is now available. Read the full metrics report published on GOV.UK. We hope that the report is informative and useful for considering compliance and improvements within …
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Looking to the year ahead
Happy New Year! As we enter 2022, I have been reflecting on the year that was 2021. I am proud of what the Commission achieved over the year, and of the way in which we have supported and regulated the …
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Defra response to the PAC report on future farming schemes
Today’s blog looks at coverage of the Public Accounts Committee’s report on the environmental land management schemes, published on 9 January.
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Get Ready for Active Wellbeing 2022 with CSSC
Active Wellbeing is back, here to help civil servants make positive lifestyle changes and get active at work. Civil Service HR is working with the Civil Service Sports Council to deliver a week-long campaign from 17 January, to encourage all …
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Universities Minister Michelle Donelan: What I wish I knew about uni before I started
As universities reopen following the Christmas break, Universities Minister Michelle Donelan has been looking at the things she wishes she knew before she started university. She spoke about her thoughts with What I Wish I Knew About University. Here are …
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Everything you need to know about face coverings in schools and colleges – who must wear them, why they’re important and when will they stop having to wear them
To maximise the number of children in school and college, the Government is temporarily recommending that face coverings are worn in classrooms and teaching spaces for pupils and students in year 7 or above, in light of the Omicron variant …
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What’s the Context? The decision to build a British atomic bomb, 8 January 1947
We’ve got to have this thing over here, whatever it costs. We’ve got to have the bloody Union Jack on top of it. “This thing” as British Foreign Secretary Ernest Bevin put it, was the Atomic Bomb. Bevin was quoted …
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CMA's Digital Markets Unit: exciting opportunities to influence the regulation of big tech
The CMA has newly created positions available within the DMU from April 2022. We’re looking for candidates with a broad range of work backgrounds and experience, to enrich the capability and culture of the DMU team as well as the wider organisation. Read this blog to find out more.
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Dragons' Den, Series 19, Episode 1
Happy new year to all readers of the blog! What better way to start 2022 than with the Dragons who are back for Series 19? It’s hard to believe this will be my 9th year of writing for this blog …
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Find out more about Local Nature Recovery and Landscape Recovery
Today we published a blog post with news about our 3 environmental land management schemes and Countryside Stewardship payment rates. In that post, we explained how the schemes fit together and the timings for them. In this post, we'll share a bit more information about eligibility and what the schemes will pay for.
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Get ready for our 3 new environmental land management schemes
Today we published more information on Local Nature Recovery and Landscape Recovery – which, along with the Sustainable Farming Incentive, make up our 3 new and ambitious environmental land management schemes.
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What do policymakers do all day?
Jonathan Mills from the Department for Work and Pensions writes about how the focus of policymakers is becoming more multidisciplinary.
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How good ventilation can help stop the spread of COVID-19 in schools and what we’re doing to help
One of the key ways of helping to reduce the spread of COVID-19, including the Omicron variant, spreading in schools, colleges and early years settings is to make sure they are well ventilated. Here we look at why ventilation is …
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How regular lateral flow tests, vaccinations and ventilation will help keep children in school: what the experts say
We have been clear that closing schools to all but vulnerable children and children of key workers, as happened last January, is not something we will repeat. This is because the situation now is totally different to last year because …
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Using design thinking to innovate
To explore new ideas in addressing user problems in the maritime industry staff from across the UKHO have recently completed a week-long Innovation Challenge, using the Design Sprint methodology.
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New year, new strategy
How our team worked together to bring about our new strategy
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Secondment opportunities for competition lawyers in 2022
We are launching a new round of secondment opportunities for competition lawyers, to start on 7 March 2022. Since its launch in June 2018, more than 40 secondees from over 20 law firms have taken part in the programme and we …
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Libraries sector in the New Year Honours list
It’s time for our traditional New Year post. Congratulations to the 13 library sector people who were awarded Honours. It is great to see these recipients recognised for continuing to help improve and support a wide range of libraries work …
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AI & IP: asking the questions
IPO CEO Tim Moss looks at how IP can best support AI innovation within the government’s National AI Strategy.
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Extreme E: An electrifying race weekend at Bovington Training Area
Over the weekend of 18-19 December 2021, we had the exciting task of hosting the final race of the inaugural season of Extreme E at Bovington Training Area (BTA) in Dorset. Extreme E is an international off-road, electric racing series …
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Break in the New Year with a brilliant B-SEN Speaker Series talk!
‘Horizon Europe - the benefits to UK science and research one year on from EU Exit’ - Louise Mothersole To break in the new year with style and to mark one year on from EU Exit (cue cheers or boos …
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What to expect when schools, colleges, universities and early years settings return after the Christmas break
Schools, colleges, universities, and early years settings are getting ready to reopen after their Christmas breaks.
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An open letter from Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi to education and childcare leaders
Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi has written an open letter to education and childcare leaders on the return to education settings in 2022 and what it will look like.
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Using lateral flow tests to reduce the self-isolation period
With COVID-19 cases reaching record levels across the UK, there is an increasing strain on key services, including the NHS. It is important that we continually review the evidence to ensure we are balancing steps to limit the spread of the virus with the need to ensure that these services can continue.
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The value and purpose of the fully remote court
Lisa Shotton, HMCTS Head of Crime (north east), shares the details and benefits of a fully remote court.
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Chloe Smith: Extending the Disability Stakeholder Review
In my new role as Minister for Disabled People, I have the privilege and responsibility for ensuring the delivery of the National Disability Strategy to help improve the lives of disabled people across the UK. Since the Strategy was published …
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UK fishing industry and coastal communities receive £75m boost
The UK government announced a £75 million investment to modernise the UK fishing industry and level up coastal communities.
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Helping people put down roots with woodland creation
Bella Murfin and Naomi Matthiessen, job share Directors for the Nature for Climate Fund Tree Programme in Defra, reflect on the last 6 months of the programme.
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Reflecting on a year responding to COVID-19
At this time of year many of us stop to reflect. The past two years have been hard on us all, the world as we know it changed forever. Like the vast majority of people, physical and social isolation were …
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A message of thanks from Health Secretary Sajid Javid to all NHS staff
Health Secretary Sajid Javid gives his support and thanks to all colleagues working in health and social care this Christmas.
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Experimenting with the Service Communities model through the Prison Leavers Project
How have we adapted the Service Communities model to form new cross-system multidisciplinary teams that are focusing on policy design, systems change and improvements to service delivery?
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Why we’re making data returns less burdensome for Local Government
A big part of the work of organisations that deliver local services is submitting data about their activities to central government, so that existing policies can be monitored and new policies can be made. There’s an official list of these …
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Long read: winter vaccination for inclusion health groups
This blog has been produced by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) and NHS England and Improvement (NHSEI). It highlights the unequal impact of COVID-19 and seasonal influenza (flu) on people from …
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Floods and dredging: explaining the Environment Agency’s approach
What is dredging and desilting? Dredging and desilting are methods that we use to remove an accumulation of silt material, such as fine gravels or soils that have been washed into rivers from surrounding land in the catchment, from the …