Published: 04 June 2008
New Code to Underpin Quality of Social Research
The Government Social Research Unit has published a new Government Social Research (GSR) Code which, according to Chief Government Social Scientist and Head of the Government Social Research Unit Paul Wiles, will underline to clients, sponsors and others the quality and professionalism of the Service’s output.
A specialist addition to the Civil Service Code, the Code emphasises that:
- GSR members must be rigorous & impartial
- that their work must be relevant to the concerns of the government & Parliament of the day
- accessible both in terms of its language & availability, and
- carried out in a legal & ethical manner
It requires GSR members to:
- carry out their work with integrity
- be provided with the necessary training & development to produce first class research & advice and,
- be outward-facing in their engagement with other analysts
Professor Wiles explained:
“Social researchers contribute greatly to government policy making and delivery through the provision of social research based on a clear understanding of what constitutes scientific quality, which the Code formalises.
It will help us to inform government policy in appropriate fashion, and act as a framework for the continuing development of the profession and its members.”
The Code was formally announced to researchers at the GSR Annual Conference in Manchester on 8 May 2008 and will now be presented to Permanent Secretaries, non-government research organisations and funders.
The two-day GSR conference, which was hosted by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), was themed ‘Research and Democracy’ and featured presentations from:
- Paul Wiles
- ESRC Chief Executive Ian Diamond
- Sir Roger Jowell, Director of the Centre for Comparative Social Services at City University
- Karen West, Head of International Consultancy at the National School of Government
Further information
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