Coproduction in public policy – lessons from the Queensland Housing Strategy Research and Evaluation Program
In 2019, The University of Queensland’s Institute of Social Science Research (ISSR) and ARTD Consultants were engaged by Queensland’s Department of Housing and Public Works (DHPW) to evaluate their ten-year Queensland Housing Strategy.
We worked collaboratively with our ISSR and DHPW colleagues to develop a monitoring and evaluation framework for the Strategy, and to assess the progress against the Strategy’s first Action Plan. Our final report was submitted to the Department earlier this year and was considered when developing the second action plan (2021–2025).
ISSR and ARTD’s work together on the Research and Evaluation Program of the Queensland Housing Strategy saw Dr Emily Verstege and Professor Tim Reddel embedded with the Department for a period, which allowed them to access the more ‘informal’ side of policy making – having ad hoc conversations with department officials – as well as the more formal discussions and meetings.
Professor Reddel has published a journal article reflecting on lessons for coproducing knowledge in public policy. In the article, Prof. Reddel argues that this approach allowed for more meaningful coproduction. This coproduction approach also had the flexibility to adapt both to the inherently changeable political environment, and to external pressures, including COVID-19.
The open access article is published in Policy Design and Practice: Knowledge coproduction: panacea or placebo? Lessons from an emerging policy partnership
