Duncan O’Leary joined Demos in January 2005. At Demos he works on projects looking at public services, skills and work and was edited a recent pamphlet on The Politics of Public Behaviour.
Duncan has been involved in Demos’ public interest consultancy work with the Department for Education and Skills, The British Council, and the Central Police Training and Development Authority. He was co-author of The Leadership Imperative: Reforming Children’s Services from the ground up, Demos (2005) and Working Progress: How to reconnect young people and organisations, Demos (2006), 'Children's Services: The Professional Challenge', The Learning We Live By, Capacity (2006), Re-imagining government: Putting people at the heart of New Zealand's public sector, Demos (2006). Duncan is also a regular contributor to the Demos weblog.
Prior to joining Demos, Duncan worked as a Researcher for the National for School Leadership. He has a BA in History from the University. of Nottingham College
The Leadership Imperative explores the role of leadership in the emerging reforms of local children's services. It suggests that for the integration of services to work, leaders must focus upon changing the prevailing cultures of organisations, rather than altering the structure of services and hoping that working practices will naturally follow.
This report proposes a series of recommendations for schools, universities, government and other organisations aimed at reconnecting employers and young people in the name of productive and fulfilling work.
This report argues that the time is right to go beyond restoring the capacity of New Zealand’s public sector. The next step is a full-scale renewal of its purpose, systems and ways of working.
This provocation paper analyses the strengths and weaknesses of the emerging consensus – given expression by Lord Leitch in his review – around education and skills policy for the future. It argues that important elements of this consensus need to be challenged if the UK is to fulfil the laudable ambitions outlined in the Leitch Review and succeed in harnessing the talents of the whole population.
Intermediaries have become hugely important to us. They mediate many of our personal and professional relationships, providing us with new opportunities, guiding and shaping our choices. Advisers, experts and brokers tell us where to shop, who to do business with – and who to hire.
A Common Language underlines why English matters and sets out how policy can encourage and support learning.
The personal has become political. Increasingly, governments find themselves drawn into questions about how children are parented, how household waste is disposed of, how people travel, how much they save for later in life, and how much they eat, drink, smoke and exercise.
This report examines Britain's skills gap and argues that a damaging paradox - those with the least skills are the least likely to train - is a social as well as an economic issue.
We are examining emerging approaches to public service delivery from across the globe to understand what a new wave of reform might look like in New Zealand, and to examine how unions can take a proactive role in helping their members adapt and thrive in the future.
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A project with IDeA looking at how efforts to re-orient services around the needs of users are disrupting professional boundaries, roles and status.
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A project with the Guardian and the The Recruitment and Employment Confederation
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A project with NESTA, exploring the extent to which the perceptions of and attitudes of school-age pupils towards work and innovation differ from or complement the working world they are likely to experience.
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This project is a chance to explore the tensions in the current debate between fostering a 'nanny state' and finding a response to some of the most pressing social issues of our time.
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This project, running in parallel to wider Demos work on adult learning, will begin with first principles – why ESOL matters – and work through to a logical conclusion of how best it can be delivered in practice, within a coherent policy framework.
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This project will explore how social networks will transform the workplace, with implications for how people experience work and businesses increase their bottom line.
MoreCBI take on skills - claims the FE sector is underperforming due to an uncompetitive market
Last week I watched two different programmes charting the progress of two new brands of...
The last two days has seen Demos, OECD and the Innovation Unit (DfES) hosting an international...
Just read an interesting Article in USA Today regaling the benefits of offshoring programming...
Where does plagiarism stop and open source learning begin? A report from the Joint Council...
Charlie Leadbeater continues his personalisation Odyssey with an article in The Times Higher...
Last month there was a brief discussion on an example of the internet 'bringing innovation...
[via IWire]Valdis Crebs has produced a new networked representation of the purchasing pattern...
Its not something which seems likely to precipitate an immediate revision of the American...
The Evatt Foundation in Australia have just published an article that I wrote for their...
The Guardian carries the think-tank version of the kiss-and-tell story today. Ellie Levenson...
Perhaps foolishly I expected them to appear at the top of the page (where the headlines...
The issue still being debated, however, is whether these blogs actually broaden the base...
When George Orwell wrote 1984 he probably didn’t envisage Davina McCall presiding...
The idea has had a mixed reception – some regarding it as fairly traditional bonus...
The way in which medical staff provide care for cancer patients was explained to me over...
A few words from the camp:"We'll judge each game and each week as it comes."...
The UK's first official download chart is launched today.The move is being trumpeted...
There’s a bit of an experiment taking place on Tom Watson's blog at the moment...
As promised, the recruitment of guest bloggers for the Party conferences continues. David...
Public value might not be that valuable, suggests James Crabtree in an article in The New...
As the posts come in from Brighton, it seems that the Labour Party itself is getting in...
My little brother achieves fame before I do, reacting to Tony Blair's conference speech...
Another day of speeches in Brighton, here's a flavour..."Of course we debate. Of...
Interesting to see George Bush criticising his opponent for his ‘September 10 attitude...
Following hot on the heels of Mecca Cola and The Islamic Bank of Britain is Ummah Foods...
On one level this seems a good example of the Pro-Am economy, but on another it interests...
It can be difficult filling an audience for an event, even if you’re President of...
An experiment on the Guardian newsblog starts today which might be worth keeping an eye...
This seems to throw up a couple of issues:Firstly, that the first-past-the-post system isn...
Peter Preston wrote an article in the Observer yesterday that’s worth a read if you...
There’s a bit of a storm brewing over Peter Hain’s comments in an interview...
Apparently polling has demonstrated some support for the idea, but is it really going to...
As might be expected they have gone for the Sky option, arguing that the '2 million...
The Networked Learning Communities programme, which aims to facilitate the spread of good...
Being a text vote it was fairly predictable that a group with a teenage following would...
The debate certainly seems to be gathering momentum ' the Media Guardian ran lengthy...
Ever wondered why your postings never get any comments? If so, click here for some advice...
I came across an article in The Times over the weekend. The headline was 'And talking...
So the good news is that Tom Watson's blog is back up and running ' and the other...
Networks of schools are something that Demos has been interested in for a while; last year...
The first was the description given by Derek Twigg, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of...
Seeing as the paperboy in my area has taken to delivering the papers after everyone has...
Right, i'm off home.[via Tom Watson]
News is getting pretty visual nowadays. I've just come across a site called 10x10...
There are undoubtedly many profound ways to engage with the public realm. For now, though...
It may have died down a bit recently, but one phrase that's been hard to avoid during...
So the BBC's license fee looks set to be renewed today, with a new governance structure...
'survey that says word-of-mouth/personal recommendation is more important in creating...
The topic up for discussion in our seminar was Personalised Learning and the presenters...
Great story on BBC news this morning about a new directive in Mexico City ' the mayor...
With an election drawing closer, there's been an ever'growing clamour over the...
So it's Monday. Feeling tired? I'm not. But then according to a survey reported...
If you enjoyed our publication last year The Pro-Am Revolution then the discussion taking...
The bit that really interested me comes towards the end of the article when Woodward says...
Collective action seems to be getting interesting nowadays. The Fairtrade movement seems...
Bored of the polls yet..? Did The Wisdom of Crowds float your boat..? If the answers are...
Bit slow on the uptake here, but The Times has an election blog...featuring (amongst others...
Which all makes you wonder whether there really is one. As I sat with a group of professionals...
One up for the Open Source movement - the Guardian Online reports that Wikipedia had an...
Sometimes you wonder about the future of politics. And then you have your faith restored...
MPs eh. You might have noticed that they work for you...well it also turns out that they...
Governments eh. Geoff Mulgan, co-author of the aforementioned Wide Open [and Demos founder...
Having done this, it came out in favour of Labour...before decrying virtually everything...
George Lucas says there'll be no more Star Wars after Episode III. What with all the...
I've just been doing some reading for our Community Leadership project with the National...
Avid greenhouse readers might remember that a couple of months ago Demos held a seminar...
It's Friday, we're starting a new project. And it looks a really interesting one...
As it happens, Woodward makes the same point in his book. During his time in charge he revolutionized...
Here are two things i didn't know before i switched on the radio this morning:1. There...
Something pretty inspiring happened to me yesterday - i met an 86 year-old wearing a white...
First things first, this is already happening in a lot of pretty successful schools and...
Who said Open Source couldn't be fun...?[Via the GIB]
During the discussion, one thing which I thought came out particularly strongly was the...
Like many a great sporting event, however, the occassion has been marred by controversy...
1. Failure is often a precondition for innovation and learning. Leaders must balance organisational...
Despite all the cliche's about 'lame ducks', i'd say Michael Howard has...
England won the ashes yesterday. The contest has captured the nation's imagination all...
Yep, you guessed it. According to this bit of research, you might well be safer choosing...
Five steps to better inspectionWe expect a lot of our leaders. In education, we expect them...
Just come across what looks a useful resource for anyone interested in Children's Services...
George Weah, footballing legend, is one of 20 candidates standing for President in the Liberian...
I've just had a read of David Miliband's speech this week on 'The Politics of...
- We'll be looking beyond literacy and numeracy (though of course not dismissing them...
So i've been doing some reading for our project on Organisational litercy. Having been...
There have been weeks of deliberation. Of point scoring. Of drama. Of tears. Of trials...
Our report on leadership in children's serives is out today (download it here). After...
This will be interesting if it happens.People who are not members of the Conservative Party...
The interesting thing about it seems to be that there is no predetermined answer that the...
All of which reminds me of a speech I saw Alan Johnson make on regulation about a month...
The answer's not as obvious as you'd think, apparently. A couple of stats from today...
I've come accross a bizarre set of statistics over on the Guardian Newsblog - apparently...
There will be the inevitable cries for government to �do something�, which...
Great picture over on Councillor Andrew Brown's blog...
And wasn't one of the great football teams was the Dutch team which famously played...
Amongst his list of criticisms of the 'PC Brigade' he writes, 'Giving employment...
Digby Jones (who is Chair of HTI for this year) was typically strong on this � arguing...
You may have noticed that we're getting excited about Skype at the moment at Demos...
Contintuing the theme of the take-up new ideas/technology, I meant to write a post the other...
Interesting news - McDonald's is introducing a pilot scheme which will allow two members...
The challenge that Cameron set himself, I think, was the right one:�Having defined...
The temptation is to be either support or oppose greater freedoms for schools, but the danger...
The Guardian carries a story today on the fall of serious/violent crime since the liberalisation...
You've never had it so bad. Sorry if you've been trying to comment on the greenhouse...
Talking to the public about science can be a controversial matter. Really controversial...
Perhaps James Tooley, who thinks that education was fine before the state got involved with...
The general response seems to be that there are some funny people around nowadays. But does...
I see that Topshop is launching an ethical clothing range today (or an experiment with one...
Of course it may mean all of the above - and more - but i do think that the terminology...
Firstly, it's very noticeable that the New Zealand political scene is quite differentt...
Amongst the wealth of useful things that we've been learning about New Zealand over...
- Perhaps the biggest lesson, which we hadn't picked up before we got here is the genuine...
- There is a school of thought that Surestart is actually becoming less effective as it...
Update: thanks to everyone who has emailed in on this (keep them coming!) - i'll post...
Yes, the rumours are true - the comments section is working again. There's no registration...
- Using the Children and Young People's Plan to agree a where national priorities...
The announcement from a group of 900 doctors that the government should look at moving away...
Just a quick entry to point towards a couple of interesting things going on over at the...
You may have noticed that we have a bit on an interest in professionalism at Demos at the...
...ok you've clicked this far......so you might fancy editing the discription of us...
No Friday rant as yet, so a thought for the day instead:Before you criticise someone, walk...
Sorry for the second posting in a week about Demos, but i couldn't let my favourite...
The PHOs in particular seem to be doing some really interesting work by linking GPs, communities...
As with so many of the innovative projects that we've visited this week it seems to...
For me, the answer (as always) seems to lie in Ronald Heifetz's analysis of leadership...
Crisis, what crisis? In a perfect storm of identity politics and collective action a new...
Demos associates Charlie Leadbeater and Paul Miller have just started working on a book...
Tony Blair caused a stir a couple of weeks back by signing a petition (do prime ministers...
I'm going to do something silly here and recommend a book before i've even read...
Sociologist Zygmunt Bauman says that 'We have never been so free and so unable to change...
Have a read of the pamphlet here, or have a glance over the presentation that Sarah and...
I’ve just come across what looks like a brilliant recycling scheme in the US. It’...
It didn’t make the front pages (as far as I know) but I think David Miliband’...
Writing in the Guardian today Polly Toynbee argues that “If John Major was in office...
Welcome to the project blog for this project. During the project i will be posting some...
In The Leadership Imperative, published by Demos last year, Hannah Lownsbrough and I argued...
Welcome to the project blog for this project. During the project we will be posting some...
Oh dear. Tony Blair has made a speech saying that people need to adapt their lifestyles...
So Tom Bentley finished as Demos Director on Friday – completing seven years at the...
I’ve been doing a bit of reading for a new project that we are starting with the IDeA...
This is a smart idea of from Tesco - people will be able to earn loyalty points for every...
Having watched five episodes of the West Wing this weekend (i'm a late starter) i feel...
There are lots of different ways to make money in the same market – high value added...
I've been having a read of the Conservatives' revised Built to Last document, that...
"An honest and good point, well made" - Labour MP Harry Cohen on John Prescott...
A while back I wrote a fairly unformed blog post about the relationship between professionalism...
If there’s one thing that annoys me, it is when the same people who defend the first...
Reading the special Every Child Matters pull-out in Society Guardian yesterday one quote...
Couple of quick thoughts on the response to the Stern report on climate change today: ...
The Education Secretary, Alan Johnson, wants learning outside the classroom to be at the...
Every so often you see a new word and you feel duty-bound to post it on the blog. So here...
As useful as Google is, I think it might have some interesting effects on the recruitment...
Ever heard of a webinar? Nope me neither, until i was asked to take part in one the other...
I am just writing a provocation paper for a Demos event with Bill Ramell on January 30th...
Just a quick post to let you know that we are holding an event with Bill Rammell on January...
Ok i admit it. I watch Big Brother. And i’m worried. In the space of two weeks a whole...
Is it me, or is it becoming compulsory to offer some kind of metaphor to do with a house...
Iain Dale writes an interesting post on his blog to today, criticising Alan Johnson and...
So Barack Obama is standing for President. If you're wondering what all the fuss is...
What a shame that Martha Kearney is leaving newsnight. She is off to present the World at...
Neighbourhood Fix-it, apparently. It’s a new website from the evil geniuses at MySociety...
Aside from all the pessimism in Prospect this month there is also a really interesting article...
It’s a matter of weeks now before a new Prime Minister takes office and the clear...
Yesterday Niamh and I launched Demos’s latest pamphlet, Recruitment 2020: How Recruitment...
Another damaging poll report for the government today:Apparently 52 per cent of senior figures...
His resignation speech in full: And now, the end is here And so I face the final curtain...
I had the pleasure of going to Belfast last week for Thursday and Friday. What a great place...
I’ve been watching the debate about schooling/grammar schools/academies/choice with...
Really interesting post from Danny Finkelstein, over on the Times' Comment Central blog...
Here's a thought. The government wants to raise the school leaving age. And lots of...
Here's a good idea, i think. Harriet Harman says that: "Once a bill has gone through...
The Sutton Trust has (rightly) caused a bit of a stir today with its work highlighting Britain...
Another tension i’ve been mulling over recently is the difficulties that all political...
Just a quick post to flag up two roundtable seminars that we are running on The Politics...
I was bemused watching the news yesterday. Apparently Prince has ‘insulted’...
Boris Johnson is standing as a Conservative candidate for London Mayor. This should be fascinating...
This to me is incredible. As in literally. I don’t believe how seriously it is being...
Here’s a question: can anyone recommend me a good left-wing blog or two to add to...
I'd forgotten how slow news is in August. If you're struggling for something to...
Roy Hattersley has a provocative peice in the Guardian today, in which he argues that J...
There is a bit of a debate bubbling under about public services at the moment, which will...
This is pretty good - tells you where all the candidates stand in the US presidential running...
John Kay has an good article in Prospect this month, presumably based on his book The Truth...
I was in parliament square for the unveiling of the Mandela statue today. I went there thinking...
The one question I always struggle to answer is ‘what to people do when they leave...
Anthony Browne, the new Director of Policy Exchange, has an article in the Spectator this...
Just a quick post to let people know that we’re holding two more seminars on The Politics...
Just a quick post to flag up an article i have up on the Guardian's Comment-is-Free...
One of the more interesting Political developments of the last week – the non-election...
There’s another interesting record industry story around today – Radiohead are...
If you’re still wondering what to make of the political events of the last few weeks...
A few links below that you might be interested in from this week: The Times’ Comment...
Anyone interested in the debate on public behaviour – and the role of government in...
This strikes me as a great idea: 'Drinkers worried about liver damage can test...
My hopes for a bit more progressive action in the blogosphere may have been answered. Liberal...
I wonder if David Cameron has prompted an interesting debate this morning – not about...
Here’s a question. Who knows best about how to teach children to read: teachers and...
Last week I argued that both the government and the opposition are struggling to reconcile...
I know everyone's supposed to be fed up at this time of year but I'm not. I reckon...
The Times’ Comment Central is one of my favourite blogs and I enjoy Daniel Finkelstein...
This was the most interesting thing I read over the weekend. It’s a piece looking...
I don’t know why I keep blogging about school choice, but I can’t help it. Today...
Good to see that the Guardian is getting a little more web 2.0 with its comment moderation...
Just a quick post to let everyone know that the recordings from the launch of the Demos...
Mitt Romney has pulled out of the race to be the Republican nominee, leaving the field clear...
If you have five minutes to spare have a listen to John Humphrey's interview this morning...
John Hutton’s speech to Progress today is causing a stir. (Here’s Polly Toynbee...
WARNING: If you have not seen the ending of the West Wing and intend to do so, do NOT continue...
I’ve just seen this article by John Craig – of the newly formed third sector...
I’m enjoying the new Politicshome – it’s found a niche in providing cross...
Lots of talk of U-turns in the news today. Yesterday’s news on the 10p tax rate, Jim...
A couple of thoughts struck me this morning as I listened to the debate on the today programme...
Demos published a new pamphlet yesterday: The Politics of Public Behaviour. It looks at...
George Osborne’s idea of a 'fuel duty stabiliser' is an interesting one...
I just got in the lift up to our office, only to read a notice saying ‘This lift does...