Policy@Manchester

What Policy@Manchester does

Policy@Manchester is the dedicated policy engagement institute of The University of Manchester, operational since 2016 and headquartered on the university's Oxford Road campus in Manchester, UK. It exists to channel the university's academic research into local, national, and global policy outputs by producing themed policy publications (Digital Truths, Planning for Prevention, Power in Place, On Resilience, Going Nuclear, and others), maintaining an expert-articles blog (blog.policy.manchester.ac.uk), running events including party-conference engagement, delivering internal policy-impact training for university researchers, and operating the GM Policy Hub to connect academics directly with Greater Manchester Combined Authority and Manchester City Council officials. The institute also spearheads the UKRI NERC Digital Solutions Hub (providing access to over 40 petabytes of environmental, social, economic, and health data via the JASMIN supercomputer) and is a partner in the Research England-funded CAPE consortium with UCL, Cambridge, Northumbria, and Nottingham.

The business model is non-commercial: Policy@Manchester is a unit of the publicly chartered University of Manchester and does not sell products or charge fees. Inputs include internal university funding, ring-fenced grant funding from UKRI (NERC for the Digital Solutions Hub) and Research England (CAPE), and in-kind academic contributions from partner universities and partner organisations (Government Office for Science, Parliamentary Office for Science & Technology, Nesta, Social Market Foundation, GMCA, Manchester City Council). Customer segments are vertical and policy-institutional: local/national/international policymakers, Greater Manchester combined and local authorities, and University of Manchester researchers and staff seeking policy impact pathways. Leadership comprises Co-Directors Francesca Gains (Professor of Public Policy) and Andy Westwood (Professor) plus a small engagement team including Madeleine Smart (Engagement Officer, Digital Solutions Hub); the unit operates with approximately 8 staff.

The technology footprint is a content-and-knowledge-exchange platform rather than a productised software stack — a WordPress-hosted articles blog, publications microsite, and partnership-driven data infrastructure (NERC/JASMIN). There is no commercially priced offering, no app or API, and no disclosed revenue. The institute's defensibility rests on the credibility of its parent university, the breadth of its academic talent pool, the depth of its data assets through NERC, and its institutional access to UK policymakers via CAPE and the GM Policy Hub.

Name

Policy@Manchester

Legal name

The University of Manchester

Website

https://policy.manchester.ac.uk

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Policy@Manchester is the University of Manchester's non-profit policy engagement institute, producing research-led publications, events, and training that connect the university's academics with local, national, and international policymakers, primarily via the GM Policy Hub and the CAPE consortium.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Policy Research & Engagement Services

NAICS

Marketing Research and Public Opinion Polling (54191)

akta.pro primary industry

Policy, Regulatory & Public Affairs Research (BPAHALAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Higher Education Governance & Quality Policy Research (EDADADAI), Public Sector & Policy Consulting (BPAHACAN)

Keywords

• Policy research
• Policy engagement
• Evidence-based policy
• Public policy training
• Academic policy institute

Headquarters

HQ city

Manchester

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Policy@Manchester is a policy engagement institute within The University of Manchester that conducts and disseminates research-informed evidence, ideas, and analysis to inform and influence policymakers. It produces policy publications, briefings, and events, and operates the Greater Manchester (GM) Policy Hub to support evidence-based decision-making across local and national government.

Product overview

Policy@Manchester is The University of Manchester's policy engagement institute that operates as a content publication and policy research platform rather than a traditional technology product company. The organization offers a portfolio of publications (including Digital Truths, Planning for Prevention, Power in Place, and Building Utopia), the GM Policy Hub for connecting academics with local policymakers in Greater Manchester, NERC Digital Solutions Hub for environmental data access, CAPE for academic-policy engagement funding, articles/blog content, training resources, and Greater Manchester ARIs. These products and services work together to bridge academic research with policy impact, focusing on regional and national policy challenges in areas such as health, environment, economy, and urban development.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• GM Policy Hub: A partnership initiative connecting academics with local policymakers to address regional policy agendas in Greater Manchester.
• CAPE

Products and services

• Greater Manchester Policy Hub (GM Policy Hub)
• Policy Publications and Briefings
• Policy Training and Resources Training programmes and resources designed to build policy engagement skills among researchers, academics, and postgraduate students.
• Policy Events Programme Conferences, seminars, and public events convened by Policy@Manchester to bring together academics, policymakers, and civil society stakeholders.
• NERC Digital Solutions Hub A Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)-funded digital solutions capability hosted at The University of Manchester, providing data and digital infrastructure support for environmental and policy research, leveraging the JASMIN supercomputer facility.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Social Market FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Social Market Foundation to produce policy reports. The System and the Cell report explores healthcare in the prison system, highlighting systemic issues and making recommendations for policymakers.
• Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGMCA and Manchester City Council supported by GM Policy Hub and academics at The University of Manchester to create pilot Areas of Research Interest (ARIs) for the city region, focused on good growth and prevention priorities.
• Manchester City CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint workshops with academic and policy experts to develop 13 ARIs supporting delivery of long-term strategic goals aligned with Greater Manchester Strategy and Our Manchester Strategy.
• UKRI Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe University of Manchester spearheads the Digital Solutions Hub programme on behalf of NERC. The DSH provides access to over 40 petabytes of NERC's environmental datasets as well as integrated environmental, social, economic and health data.
• CAPE (Capabilities in Academic Policy Engagement)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership between The University of Manchester, UCL, Cambridge, Northumbria and Nottingham, in collaboration with Government Office for Science, Parliamentary Office for Science & Technology, Nesta, and Transforming Evidence Hub. Funded by Research England. Enhances routes for academic-policy engagement across the university sector.
• Government Office for SciencecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in CAPE consortium supporting effective and sustained engagement between academics and policy professionals across higher education sector.
• Parliamentary Office for Science & TechnologycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in CAPE consortium focused on academic-policy engagement.
• NestacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in CAPE consortium for policy engagement knowledge exchange.
• Transforming Evidence HubcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in CAPE consortium for academic-policy engagement.
• Greater Manchester Policy HubcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPolicy@Manchester initiative connecting academics with local policymakers to address regional policy agendas through seminar series, fellowship scheme, and research reports.
• GM ConsultminorOthersARIs are available on GM Consult portal for six months, closing December 2026, for stakeholders to submit responses.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• IPPR (Institute for Public Policy Research): UK progressive think tank producing policy research across economy, climate, and public services. A broader incumbent operating in the same evidence-to-policy category.
• Institute for Government: Long-established UK think tank focused on government effectiveness and Whitehall reform. A broader incumbent in the same UK evidence-to-policy space Policy@Manchester serves.
• Centre for Cities: Urban-economics think tank focused on city-level economic policy and devolution — overlapping with Policy@Manchester's regional economic and devolution research themes.
• Nuffield Foundation: UK charitable foundation funding independent research on education, welfare, and justice. Comparable as a research-funding and policy-evidence intermediary with academic ties.
• RAND Europe: International policy research organisation providing evidence-based analysis to governments across Europe. Comparable as a broader, established academic-policy research intermediary.

Direct peers

• Cambridge Centre for Science and Policy (CSaP): University of Cambridge-based policy engagement centre pairing senior researchers with policymakers. Directly comparable to Policy@Manchester as a university-hosted academic-policy engagement intermediary.
• Bennett Institute for Public Policy (Cambridge): Cambridge university policy research institute producing evidence-based research on economy, technology, and public services. Closely comparable operating model to Policy@Manchester.
• UCL Policy Lab: UCL-based policy engagement and research unit, partner alongside Policy@Manchester in the CAPE consortium. Directly comparable university-hosted policy intermediary.

Emerging players

• Nesta: UK innovation foundation funding research and policy experiments, partner in the CAPE consortium with Policy@Manchester. Comparable mission in evidence-based innovation policy.
• Policy Lab (UK Cabinet Office): UK government in-house innovation lab applying design and research methods to policymaking. A government-side counterpart with overlapping academic-engagement objectives.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/UoMPolicy
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/policy-at-manchester

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Policy@Manchester