The politics of the new governance: Quangos, partnerships and administrative reform

Career overview

Emeritus Professor Chris Skelcher holds a PhD, MSc, and BSc from the University of Birmingham and Wales, respectively, and is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences. His research primarily investigates the interaction between democracy, governance, and contemporary institutions, focusing on the implications of governmental fragmentation into multiple agencies and partnerships that operate at arm''s length from elected authorities. Professor Skelcher''s early research in the mid-1990s, funded by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, examined quangos, exploring board members'' membership and attitudes through large-scale surveys and interviews. His notable work includes a widely cited article on community regeneration partnerships co-authored with Professor Vivien Lowndes and the publication of a significant research monograph, *The Appointed State: Quasi-governmental organisations and democracy* in 1998, which led to his contributions to the Public Administration Select Committee and the Committee on Standards in Public Life. In the 2000s, his research evolved to include public-private partnerships and various local-level special purpose agencies. He has served as Principal Investigator on multiple ESRC research awards and has been involved in various collaborative projects, including a cross-national Q methodology study of public managers'' understandings of democracy. His recent book, co-authored with Stephen Jeffares and Helen Sullivan, titled *Hybrid Governance in European Cities*, was published in 2013. Professor Skelcher has also engaged in numerous commissioned studies and evaluations for government bodies, contributing to policy advice and drafting constitutional documents for local authorities. He has directed evaluations of poorly performing local authorities and has been involved in significant ESRC Public Service Programme research awards. In his teaching role, he co-teaches a postgraduate module on ''Partnership and Collaboration'' and has previously taught various modules on public management and governance. He is currently supervising a PhD study on network governance related to low carbon transitions in European cities.

Research interests

Emeritus Professor Chris Skelcher''s research examines the interaction between ideas about democracy and governance and the institutions of contemporary governance. His primary focus is on the implications for democracy arising from the fragmentation of government into multiple agencies and partnerships that operate at arm''s-length from elected political authority. His initial research into quangos in the mid-1990s, funded by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, involved investigating the membership and attitudes of board members through a large-scale postal survey and semi-structured interviews. He has also conducted studies on community regeneration partnerships, which resulted in a highly cited article in *Public Administration*. In 1998, he published a significant research monograph titled *The Appointed State: Quasi-governmental organisations and democracy*, which led to invitations to provide evidence to various parliamentary committees. His research evolved in the 2000s to focus on public-private partnerships and single-purpose boards, including regeneration partnerships and business improvement districts. He has been principal investigator on multiple ESRC research awards and has collaborated on various projects that involve methodological development, such as a cross-national Q methodology study of public managers'' understandings of democracy. His recent work includes a book co-authored with Stephen Jeffares and Helen Sullivan, titled *Hybrid Governance in European Cities*, which analyses changing forms of urban governance. He has also collaborated on projects examining third-party government in comparative perspectives and has investigated the politics of quango reform across different governmental contexts. His current research interests include the network governance of the transition to low carbon in European cities and the relationship between institutional flexibility and democracy. Emeritus Professor Skelcher''s research is characterised by a strong emphasis on methodological innovation and the application of interpretive studies to understand governance and performance in public organisations. He has been involved in numerous commissioned studies and evaluations for government bodies, contributing to policy advice and the development of governance frameworks for local authorities.