The Government Office for Science (GO-Science) has today launched a suite of documents to help civil servants use systems thinking to create more effective and enduring policies to address increasingly complex problems.
The Royal Academy of Engineering contributed to the development of the documents in collaboration with the civil service’s Systems Thinking Interest Group and Policy Profession Unit. The suite includes an introduction to systems thinking, case studies, a toolkit, and the systems thinking ‘journey’ that aligns systems thinking to existing civil service approaches and maps systems thinking principles to stages of policy design.
The Academy has for many years championed the use of systems approaches by government as a means of structuring integrated policy responses to complex challenges. Systems thinking helps to make sense of complexity, change our understanding of issues, find ways of achieving better outcomes, and see new opportunities to solve multiple problems at the same time.
Professor Sir Jim McDonald, President of the Royal Academy of Engineering, says of this latest step by government: “The development of these resources signals an important recognition of the need for and importance of systems thinking and systems approaches within policy making. I welcome these resources as an important step toward equipping civil and public servants with the questions and approaches they need to address the most complex policy challenges facing governments today. The Royal Academy of Engineering stands ready to support government further on its journey in understanding and embedding these crucial perspectives and methods in their vital work.”
The Academy also promotes the use of systems approaches through its Policy Fellowships—an intensive professional development programme that supports better evidence-based policymaking through engineering perspectives and systems approaches. The programme is open for applications until 28 June.
Policy Fellows are selected from exceptional civil and public servants with a variety of insights, expertise and backgrounds from across the policy community who are interested in progressing a policy challenge through exposure to engineering expertise. The programme injects the fresh and practical perspectives of the ‘engineering habits of the mind’ into policy work and explores new ways of working between policymakers and engineers. The programme has supported 47 Policy Fellows since it started in 2019.
In a further development, the Policy Fellows and the Policy Profession Unit (PPU) have created a series of interactive workshops for civil and public servants—the Systems Thinking Knowledge Series—as an additional means to show how policy makers can use systems thinking approaches to create more effective and enduring policies. Each workshop focuses on a specific policy challenge and how the Policy Fellows used aspects of systems thinking to address that challenge.
The series is sponsored by Tamara Finkelstein, Permanent Secretary at Defra and Head of the Policy Profession, and Sir Patrick Vallance, Chief Scientific Adviser and Head of the Government Science & Engineering Profession.
Notes for Editors
- The Royal Academy of Engineering is harnessing the power of engineering to build a sustainable society and an inclusive economy that works for everyone. In collaboration with our Fellows and partners, we’re growing talent and developing skills for the future, driving innovation and building global partnerships, and influencing policy and engaging the public. Together, we’re working to tackle the greatest challenges of our age.
- The Government Office for Science advise the Prime Minister and members of the Cabinet, to ensure that government policies and decisions are informed by the best scientific evidence and strategic long-term thinking. We aim to deliver science advice mechanisms that are efficient, effective, speak truth to power and are embedded irreversibly in government systems, and have visible impact through both pro-active and demand-led science advice that is relevant, excellent, and delivered fit for purpose.
Media enquiries to: Pippa Cox at the Royal Academy of Engineering Tel. +44 207 766 0745; email: [email protected]