Dr Stephen Brookes

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Dr Stephen Brookes

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Position
Senior Fellow in Public Policy and Management and Head of Innovation in Government

Subject Area Group
i-Gov


 

Biography

Stephen is a senior fellow in public policy and management and specialises in leadership and organisational development. He is currently the head of the Innovation in Government subject area group at Manchester Business School (iGOV), and Programme Director for the MSc in Healthcare Management. Stephen has a unique blend of experience at a senior level in the police, central and regional government, and local government. He also has a sound academic background, having completed his PhD in 2004 and increasingly publishing in academic journals and books and presenting papers at conferences. Immediately prior to his appointment at MBS Stephen was the Home Office Director for the Government Office for the East Midlands, which he undertook for almost six years. During this time Stephen had considerable experience in working with partnerships and supporting both performance improvement programmes and in facilitating and leading change.

He was a police officer for thirty years having served in the Hampshire Constabulary, the Avon and Somerset Constabulary, as a Superintendent and Chief Superintendent in the Leicestershire Constabulary, and as a member of Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary. During his time as a Divisional Commander in Leicestershire he was involved in the demonstration project which sought to introduce problem-oriented policing which was later adopted as a national style of policing. In November 2004 Stephen was awarded a PhD at Nottingham Trent University. His thesis sought to identify the conditions that help or hinder the development of community-based policing and partnerships. He was also awarded the Queens Police Medal in the Jubilee Birthday Honours in June 2002 for distinguished police service and is a member of the Chartered Management Institute.

In May 2006, shortly after his appointment at MBS, Stephen was successful in securing funding from the ESRC in the 2006/07 Seminar Series Competition. A series of five seminars took place, concluding in March 2008, which set a public leadership challenge across a range of public sector disciplines. The overall aim was to identify the challenges and consistencies across the public sector from the various reform programmes and the impact that these reforms have on collective public leadership. Stephen is in the process of co-editing a book with Professor Keith Grint (Warwick Business School) – based on the series – which is due to be published by Palgrave MacMillan in autumn 2009. Stephen regularly provides leadership and organisational development to middle and senior managers from across the public sector.  He is actively engaged in research which seeks to further the concept of collective leadership and governance, and in identifying the impact of performance regimes on public sector organisations and the potential that exists for such organisations to create and demonstrate public value.

Teaching and Research interests

Stephen has been very active in research during his three years at Manchester Business School. Some of his research projects include:
  • ESRC funding for a seminar series (2006/08) – The Public Leadership Challenge (£15k). A series of 5 seminars concluded in March 2008 with final report published in July 2008. (report available at http://www.publicleadership.org)
  • Research conducted on behalf of the North West Improvement Network (NWIN) in relation to the implementation of local area agreements within north west local authorities (£50k). This research was completed in March 2008 with the final report presented to an NWIN conference at Wigan Town Hall 13th March 2008.
  • Examination of the potential and barriers to the creation and demonstration of public value within the context of Sports. This was awarded by the Department for Communities and Local Government (£20k) and overseen by Sport England and the NW Culture Observatory.   The research was completed in the Spring of 2008. Final report is available at:http://www.northwestcultureobservatory.co.uk/project.asp?f=1&action=view&id=400
  • Research commissioned by Greater Manchester Police Authority to examine the context of police performance in support of data published through the Police Performance Assessment Framework (£15k). The final report was completed and presented to the police authority on 13th January 2009.
  • Research to examine performance regimes and the creation and demonstration of public value within the context of policing in Greater Manchester(£25k). Commissioned by Greater Manchester Police, this research was completed in December 2008 and the final report is currently being written.
  • Research commissioned by the Audit Commission of England and Wales and the North West Improvement Network to assess the effectiveness of trust networks and the use of intelligence in the delivery of local area agreements (£24k). This research was completed in November2008 and will be published within the Audit Commission National Evaluation Report for Local Strategic Partnerships and as a briefing note in support of the national report.
  • Research commissioned by the Standards Board for England to assess to develop governance standards for partnerships within Manchester City Council. (£25k) This research is ongoing and a description can be accessed at http://www.publicgovernance.info/MCCresearch.htm. The project is due for completion July 2009.