Suspended in 2025/26
PP423      Half Unit
Anticipatory Policymaking

This information is for the 2025/26 session.

Course Convenor

Availability

Policymaking in time (historical knowledge and long-range strategy in the public sector); behaviourial bias, group dynamics and decision-making; seven case-study sessions on long-range policymaking challenges (including pensions, climate policy, counter-terrorism, gender equality and rights, health insurance, defence planning, resilience and crisis preparedness); a comparative assessment of the 'official mind' (what is the cultural and professional identity of public servants - and how might that shape the advice and policies they develop); an assessment of different comparative international public service systems, and how these may influence long-range policymaking; and finally different methods of mitigating short-termism and error in policymaking (including policy planning, red-teaming, internal and external inquiries, training, drawing on or commissioning external challenge etc.). 

16.5 hours of seminars and 22 hours of lectures in the Autumn Term.

Students will be expected to produce 1 essay and 1 other piece of coursework in the AT.

Students will submit the outlines of their essays and policy memos (in bullet point format) for formative feedback prior to submitting the final written versions for summative assessment. There will also be a formative presentation during the AT, with feedback, to develop policy presentation skills.

• Richard Neustadt, Thinking in Time: The Uses of History for Decision-making (1988)
• Ivor Crewe and Antony King, The Blunders of our Governments (2013)
• Suzanne Heywood, What does Jeremy think? (2022)
• Richard Haas, The Bureaucratic Entrepeneur (1999)
• George Orwell, Politics and the English Language (1946)

Essay (60%, 3000 words)

Policy brief (40%)