This report from UK think tank Onward looks at unlocking philanthropy in the UK. Philanthropy is a vital source of economic and social capital. It brings with it wealth in many forms – in funding, expertise, networks, and innovative thinking to solve pressing problems. In the current climate where an alarming number of charities are...

This report from UK think tank looks at securing the economic and environmental future of Britain's farms. England’s farmers face twin economic and environmental challenges. Two-fifths earn less than £25,000 a year, and 15% make a loss. Food exports have fallen by 13% since Brexit. Farms are responsible for polluting more rivers and lakes than...

This report from UK think tank Onward explores why the UK pension system under-invests in the tech sector and what can be done to address this. The UK has a chronic pension investment problem, leaving British innovators cash-strapped and preventing savers from cashing in on successful start-ups. Britons’ retirement savings make up a mere 10%...

This report from UK think tank Onward looks at tackling the crisis on England’s coast. England’s coast holds an important place in Britain’s history. Towns and cities along the shoreline once welcomed holidaymakers from across the country and hosted industries that exported around the world. Today, the coast is in crisis. Cheap international travel has...

This report from UK think tank Onward looks at how local government funding misses areas with fewer opportunities. Grants to local authorities are targeted on deprivation, missing parts of the country that might be more affluent overall, but have some of the lowest levels of social mobility. Inner-city boroughs are the winners while smaller towns...

This report from UK think tank Onward looks at reforming Whitehall to support science and technology. In the first half of 2023 the UK Government transformed its approach to science, creating a new Science Department, setting out a series of new strategies, and establishing an AI-focussed Foundation Models Taskforce backed by £100 million. But our...

This report from UK think tank Onward looks at how the UK must develop “Great British GPT” to stay ahead in the AI race. Artificial Intelligence will be the transformational technology of our generation. In recent months the pace of change has accelerated, with the phenomenon of generative AI creating new applications that have exploded...

is report from UK think tank Onward provides a guide for local leaders to level up their communities. Levelling Up is a national mission. But much of the energy, insight and levers to make change are local. Onward’s Levelling Up In Practice programme brings together research from places across the country to understand common challenges...

This report from UK think tank Onward looks at why green industrial jobs are critical to Levelling Up. In the report, we argue that the Government has only five years to secure green factories and bring high skilled jobs to parts of the country most in need of levelling up. These jobs will be crucial...

This report from UK think tank Onward looks at why R&D tax credits matter, and how to improve them. R&D tax incentives have been a vital tool in driving business R&D spending. In part thanks to the incentives regime, the UK has reached its target for R&D spending (2.4% of GDP by 2027) eight years early....