The Centre for Public Policy and Administration (CPPA) provides the platform at Queen’s for advancing research and policy engagement locally, nationally and internationally. By providing a forum to bring academics and public service practitioners together, it provides a step-change in public policy scholarship, education and practice.

Through its activities and networks, the Centre connects the worlds of academia, public administration and politics by facilitating engagement, collaboration and collective approaches to addressing policy problems, while cognisant of the differing requirements and expectations. 

In a complex policy-making environment, we aim to ensure that policymakers are aware of the potential for academic expertise to address their significant policy challenges and how to mobilise and access the most appropriate expertise. From an academic perspective, we seek to develop and mobilise knowledge and expertise to maximise impact, and to open new avenues for scholarly engagement. The Centre therefore reflects the University’s civic credentials in supporting governments to improve society by harnessing technology, creativity and ideas.

The Centre for Public Policy and Administration aims to optimise the value of publicly funded research for maximum societal and economic gain, with a particular focus on knowledge transfer. The Centre will therefore consolidate and provide a formal structure for the extensive activity we already undertake in providing education, training and research in public policy and administration.

The Centre will bring focus to ensure connectivity, complementarity and co-ordination in developing further opportunities for collaboration with leading policy experts to provide political and administrative leaders with high quality evidence and independent advice that helps them to improve policy decisions for public good.

• To provide a hub for public policy-relevant scholarship and education
• To strengthen academic policy collaboration
• To support government in addressing significant public policy challenges
• To maximise the impact of public policy research
• To locate Queen's University on the national and international public policy research community

• Design and implement practical steps to develop interaction between academics and policymakers and ensure a coordinated approach
• Develop the potential for expertise to interact with other disciplines in developing policy advice to tackle long-standing societal issues

As well as supporting academic public policy research and education, the Centre for Public Policy and Administration  will respond to economic, social and environmental challenges identified by stakeholders through the supply of evidence to inform the policymaking process. The Centre will:

• Profile Queen’s research in public policy and public administration internationally
• Support innovative and policy-relevant educational provision
• Facilitate engagement between policymakers and the most appropriate available expertise.
• Be a trusted, independent source of evidence, producing accurate and reliable outputs, and that draw on leading international developments.
• Communicate clearly, in non-specialist language and help experts to engage with the policymaking process.
• Understand how evidence is used in policy making and practice and reflect on how to improve the process and increase policy makers’ awareness and access to reliable evidence.
• Build capacity in the public sector through knowledge transfer.