Research & Policy Development

Research and policy development

Whatever the project it often demands some initial research or policy re-think to ensure you are on the right track.

WA partnership have undertaken research  for a range of organisations, specifically in the field of consumer education and personal finance.  Research projects small and large have seen us interviewing builders, trading standards professionals, consumers, teachers, student financial advisers and students.  We pride ourselves on a personal, bespoke service which aims to closely match the needs of the client and is flexible enough to react to changes of focus where necessary.

Most recently we have conducted research with Consumer Focus, Citizens Advice and the Trading Standards Institute to identify and map “consumer empowerment projects around the U.K.  Radical change is both in hand and planned in the consumer landscape, our clients, who represent leading bodies at the heart of this change, commissioned WA partnership to investigate and map the breadth and quality of existing consumer empowerment initiatives across the country.  Working with a project board assigned to oversee out work we:

  • Created a specific project brief based on an initial wish list from sponsor organisations including identifying project scope, range, target audience for research and report and performance quantifiers.
  • Created and circulated an online and hard copy questionnaire for participants.
  • Identified and contacted primary, secondary and tertiary participants.
  • Contacted and assisted recipients so as to achieve the highest level of participation possible.
  • Tracked and collated data in hard and soft formats.
  • Analysed and represented data for project sponsors.
  • Created and maintained open access on line mapping of data for second and third party interrogation.
  • Produced final report for sponsors in a publishable format including data summaries and exemplar case studies.

In addition in recent years we have carried out research for:

  • Citizens Advice and the former pfeg (Personal Finance Education Group) now Young Money on research about the role and future capacity of CABs and schools to work together to deliver financial capability in the class room.
  • For the FSA to find out about the nature and level of support on offer to students in financial education in the Higher Education sector so as to be able to gain a national picture of provision.
  • Working with Which? to encourage the provision of and to develop consumer education as part of the curriculum.
  • The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills on a Builders Quality Mark scheme

WA partnership contributed at a high level to the FSA Financial Capability Strategy sitting on the FSA’s Advisory group and Schools Project Working Group and chairing a subgroup in financial capability in schools.

WA partnership provides bespoke qualitative and quantitative research services to help clients identify policy, practice and/or need. Our service offers:

  • literature review and research
  • questionnaire construction and design in consultation with the client
  • management of the survey process
  • semi structured interviews – focus groups
  • analysis of collected data production of final report and recommendations to the client.