As the UK continues to heat up, so too has the conversation around the future of work. June saw this government’s first multi-year spending review and the launch of its highly anticipated Industrial Strategy; both showing a welcome emphasis on longer-term investment in infrastructure and growth, as well as on building the conditions for good work across the UK.

We are looking¹ ahead to two new publications this month; our first report with the EY Foundation (EYF) on 9 July on intrinsic motivation, as detailed in our Deep Dive below, and this year’s edition of the Good Work Monitor on 15 July, our interactive report which tracks trends in access to good work across local authorities in England, Scotland and Wales.

This year’s edition of the Good Work Monitor² includes a productivity analysis, reflecting the growing importance of productivity across this government’s missions. The Good Work Monitor Time Series points to deepening regional inequalities with regards to the creation of good work and access to it. It draws on the latest available data to explore trends across six dimensions of good work and proposes recommendations to ensure good work remains a strategic, cross-cutting policy priority - thus ensuring a society in which all can flourish.

We are also delighted to welcome four research assistants joining us for the summer months, Marley Bartlett from the University of Sussex, and Orsolya Dobe, Julian Kulikowski and Maria Starling from the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford. We look forward to all they will bring and contribute to our ongoing research projects at IFOW.

‍Anna and IFOW Team