Joseph Rowntree Foundation and Ipsos-MORI Hothouse win award for poverty research
The Joseph Rowntree Foundation and Ipsos MORI Hothouse have won the 2007 MRS Public Policy/Social Research Effectiveness Award for research which explored public attitudes to UK poverty.
The research – Make poverty a story: Understanding and shaping attitudes to 21st century UK poverty – suggests that the term “poverty” is not one people relate to within a UK context and therefore communication about what it really means needs to be more sophisticated. The findings are being used to inform communications initiatives which aim to increase public support for eradicating poverty in the UK.
Anne Harrop, Director of Research at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, said: “This project was undertaken as part of our Public Interest in Poverty Issues programme, which aims to build understanding of attitudes to poverty and to explore the implications of these attitudes for communication and change. This research challenges and redefines the agenda around modern day poverty and the recognition given by this award will help us get these important messages to an even wider audience.”
The judges said of the research: “It stood out from a strong and varied field as both an important programme of work, well executed, and having a significant impact on improving understanding of a major issue.”
The award was presented at a ceremony at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London on Monday 10 December.
