Policy Papers
History & Policy papers are written by expert historians, based on peer-reviewed research. They offer historical insights into current policy issues ranging from Afghanistan and Iraq, climate change and internet surveillance to family dynamics, alcohol consumption and health reforms. For historians interested in submitting a paper, please see the editorial guidelines.
Currently, 252 papers are freely searchable by theme, author or keyword, with new papers published regularly. Where possible, we publish papers to coincide with relevant policy developments. If you are a policy maker, civil society practitioner or journalist and would like to contact one of our historians, please contact [email protected].
You can download H&P policy papers directly from the Apple iBooks store to your iPhone, iPad or Mac. We also have an Amazon Kindle version to download to your PC for transfer to your Kindle via USB cable. Please consult your Kindle manual for further details.
The reservoirs that weren’t: lessons for contemporary infrastructure planning
Victorian infrastructure development is lionised today, but this interdisciplinary case study of early-twentieth century Leeds shows that the problems faced by modern projects are nothing new
Read MoreHolocaust education and contemporary anti-semitism
Holocaust education is presented as a key means of combatting anti-semitism. Larissa Allwork shows in four case studies that it may not be effective in its current form.
Read MoreThe charitable status of elite schools: the origins of a national scandal
Professor Roy Lowe examines how 1,300 independent schools in Britain came to provide tax-subsidised education to the elite – freed from oversight by nineteenth-century compromises.
Read MoreHistorical content matters: a response to the critical thinking skills agenda
Academic historical scholarship feeds down into every day history, and shapes our “common sense”, making a huge contribution to social, economic and political outcomes in all areas.
Read MoreEscaping the Thucydides Trap in political commentary
Thucydides is often confidently invoked as a source of timeless political principles – in reality, his narrative explores the complex, unpredictable nature of events, and the power of rhetoric
Read More‘The last milestone’ on the journey to full adult suffrage? 50 years of debates about the voting age
Adrian Bingham reflects on the potential impacts of granting 'Votes at 16' on the British uncertain political landscape: do sixteen year-olds have the democratic capacity (or inclination) to make informed decisions, or is this part of a wider debate about the definition of citizenship in Britain?
Read MoreSafeguarding academic freedom in a neonationalist political moment
Mike Finn shows that a century of – more or less – academic freedom in the UK cannot be taken for granted, as the state-university relationship changes and the pressures of marketisation grow, against a backdrop of neonationalist elements entering into political discourse.
Read More‘No promotion of homosexuality’: Section 28 and the No Outsiders protests
George Severs shows that since Section 28 of the Local Government Act 1988 was repealed there has been little guidance from government on how to implement LGBT-inclusive education. It would be easier to resolve the current controversy, centring on the LGBT education programme in Birmingham schools, if the Department for Education issued new guidelines.
Read MoreMaternity care reform in English prisons: a century of unanswered concerns
Historically the prison system was designed with male prisoners in mind. A landmark enquiry in 1919 laid down the first recommendations for addressing the needs of pregnant women in prison. A century on, the basic requirement that all babies and pregnant women should receive consistent high quality care remains unmet in many ways.
Read MoreThe provision of school meals since 1906: progress or a recipe for disaster?
From the 1870s onwards many poor schoolchildren regularly went to school underfed and unable to benefit from the new compulsory elementary education. Alan Finch traces the ups and downs in provision and uptake of subsidised school meals since 1906, and notes the deterioration in recent years.
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About Us
H&P is based at the Institute of Historical Research, Senate House, University of London.
We are the only project in the UK providing access to an international network of more than 500 historians with a broad range of expertise. H&P offers a range of resources for historians, policy makers and journalists.
