The City-Region Economic Development Institute (City-REDI), University of Birmingham is delighted to host this free event, ‘AnalystFEST’ on Tuesday 24 January 2017, 9.00am-3.00pm, at the University of Birmingham.

This event aims to bring together policy and academic researchers in the West Midlands and make links to national researchers, to celebrate the use of evidence. With the aim of rebuilding networks within an environment of post-facts, this event will bring together some practical examples of opportunities to work on new research and data in the future.

Speakers include Martin Reeves (Chief Executive, West Midlands Combined Authority) and Professor Simon Collinson (Deputy Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Regional Economic Engagement and Director, City-REDI), Tony Bray (Area Director, West Midlands at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills) BEIS/CLG cities and local government representatives as well as those from LARIA West Midlands.

The day will see the re-launch of the LARIA West Midlands network and provide the opportunity to showcase projects in a ‘speed dating approach’ (‘Meet the research project’) to facilitate networks and conversation between researchers. Projects will be local authority policy relevant and examples include:

Using evaluation to support local authority decision making
A Dynamic Economic Impact Model for the West Midlands
Urban Living Birmingham

Other sessions on the day will include: ‘The Combined Authority and the role of data, research and intelligence’, ‘Team West Midlands: the research capacity across the region’ and ‘First steps to collaboration: getting Data Ducks in a row’.

Refreshments and lunch will be provided.