Keynote Presentation given at the Geographical Association Annual Conference (2020)

1. Geography in Government
Patrick Rickles

2. History and Current Role

3. My Career History

4. GIS
IDR EDU
GIS
+
IDR + EDU
How can the learning
experience be improved for
interdisciplinary researchers
learning GIS?
PhD Research

5. Current Role

6. • Ministry of Justice Reform Programme
• Investing over £1bn in updating infrastructure
• Prisons, Courts, etc.
• HM Courts and Tribunals Service
• Over 300 properties around the country
• Over 20,000 employees
• Judges, Analysts, Clerks, etc.
• Thousands of cases heard each year for each jurisdiction
• Are the current locations still providing value for money?
• Would it be more cost effective to buy/build new properties?
• How would those changes affect court workloads, users, staff, etc.?
• As lead GIScientist, advise on best approach
Ministry of Justice & HMCTS

7. • API calls made to Google Maps API to do
calculations
• Initially written in Python, rewritten in R
• Difficulties maintaining in Python; more familiar with R
• Code written in a way to chunk processing and allow
timeouts
• Tens of thousands of calls
• Network/VPN issues
• Outputs then analysed in Excel and reported in
Excel, Word, etc.
• No involvement of GIS
Geospatial Outputs: Travel Times

8. • General Challenges
• Non-Experts setting/tweaking parameters
• Lack of internal infrastructure/funds/resources for
creation and sustainability of in-house solution
• Lack of prioritisation
• Med/High impact, but Low priority
• Possibly because existing solution provide figures “sufficient” for
purpose
• Difficulties associated with sustainability of any solution
due to churn
• Internal connectedness with regard to shared
communication, analyses, costs AND benefits
Geospatial Outputs: Travel Times

9. Geospatial Outputs: Travel Times

10. Geospatial Outputs: COVID-19

11. Government Geography Profession

12. Government Geography Profession
Geography is one of the newest and fastest growing professions in the public sector. We were established as part of GSE
in 2018 and already have over 1200 members spread across the public sector.
Everything happens somewhere. Now, more than ever, geographers are combining increasing quantities of geospatial
information with advances in technology to drive new insights on our place in the world. We are leading the way in
government and the public sector, recognising the importance of Geography, and we have established a profession to
support you in your work across the public sector.
We are building the profession from the bottom-up - the geography profession is free to join and all our initiatives are
free to use. This pack sets out our vision, who we are and how we’ll realise our vision, including the support and
opportunities already open to you.
Already there are lots of benefits to joining the profession from a collaborative online community to an annual
conference and awards with ideas for what else we can do to support you. But……. we’re doing this on top of our day
jobs and without a budget, so please bare with us!
If you have any ideas on how we can grow or improve the profession, or if you’d like to get involved in helping us, please
let me know.
Thanks
David

13. The public sector is made up of
organisations owned or run by the
government that deliver public services to
communities.
The Civil Service supports central
government, developing and implementing
its policies.
Public sector workers touch all aspects of life in the UK, from education
and the environment, to transport and defence.
Everything happens somewhere – geographers are always needed.
Many public sector workers join a profession, to support their skills,
expertise and career pathway.
Public Sector

14. • A profession is a group of individuals with common
professional skills, experience and expertise.
• A profession provides a career anchor for individuals, and
may also have a body to guide professional development
and progression.
• Professions have been established across government to
ensure that the Civil Service and its people are equipped
with the capability and resources to continue to develop
and deliver a professional service in the future.
What is a Profession?

15. Our Vision
To create and grow a high
profile, proud and effective
geography profession that
attracts fresh talent and has
a secure place at the heart of
government decision making

16. Realising our Vision
Create the environment for
geographers to have maximum
impact in Government
Professionalising geography in
GSE
Growing the geography
community
• Raise profile across Government
• Targeted action in individual departments
• Embedding geography in policy making
cycle
• Professional standards and chartership.
• Support (including structures) and
mentoring
• Opening up opportunities
• Professional outreach, inside and outside
of Government
• Data and exit interviews
• Diversity & inclusion

17. • It is a federative collaboration between a number of
analytical professions who deliver research, evidence
and advice to a consistent, professional standard.
• The aim of the Analysis Function is to act as the go-to
hub for best practice research and analysis services
within Government.
• AF mission is to support everyone in government to
make better decisions so that policy and operations,
deliver value for money and improve the lives of the
people of the UK.
Working with the Analysis Function

18. • Commission to map the future of location data for the
UK.
• National Geospatial Strategy next year.
• Call for evidence just closed:
• Supporting innovation in the geospatial sector.
• Enhancing the UK’s geospatial assets.
• Driving investment and productivity in geospatial
applications.
• https://goo.gl/LDW1ZQ
Working with the Geospatial Commission

19. Geography Profession Leadership Team
David Wood (DEFRA) – Head of Geography
Jon Pickstone (Scottish Government) – Chair CGGG
Liz Fox-Tucker (DEFRA) – Strategy, Governance & Networks
Ian Coady (DfID) – Profession Growth
Steve Campbell (MHCLG) – Geography in Policy Making
Claire Edwards (Geospatial Commission) – Geography in Delivery
Alistair Edwardes (ONS) – Professional Solutions Standards
Ian Spencer (MOD) – Professional Membership Standards
Brian Vinall (Environment Agency) – Professional Outreach
Patrick Rickles (HMCTS) – Diversity & Inclusion
Clare Hadley (OS) – Local Government
Rollo Home (OS) – Local Government (Joint)
A group of passionate geographers from across the public sector who have come together and each spend 1-2
days a month on top of our day jobs growing and developing our profession.

20. Over 1200 members from across the public sector, and growing!
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400
BEIS/DfT
HMT
NAO
DIT
DCMS
FCO
PAC
MOJ
HMRC
HO
DHSC
DWP
DfID
DfE
GLA
DfT
Northern Ireland Government
CO
Other
ONS
Welsh Government
MHCLG
Scottish Government
Local Government
BEIS
MOD
DEFRA
Total
Total
Our members

21. What we say about ourselves

22. What we say about ourselves

23. Opportunity for All
Recognition and Support
• Geography Ambassador Programme
• Government Widening Participation
• RGS Race, Culture and Equality (RACE)
working group
• Positive Action Pathways Programme
• Departmental minority groups, Senior
Management and Champions
• GSE & Analytical Function Diversity &
Inclusion Working Groups
• Over 40% of members identify as female

24. Who are we?

25. Winners of the 2019 GSE Geography in Government Awards (see http://bit.ly/GSEblog4):
Advancing geospatial data science – Geography Spatial Analysts Team at the Office for National Statistics for
work undertaken for the United Nations World Data Forum on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to
provide a global metric for indicator 9.1.1, which measures the proportion of the rural population living within
2km of an all-season road (an important measure of connectivity and accessibility).
Operational Delivery – Ben Payne at Natural England for a new evidence-based approach to conservation and
licensing for the great crested newt that combines geospatial analysis with ecological knowledge. By reducing
the need for survey, trapping and translocation of this protected species it cuts out costs, delays and
developer/investor uncertainty in the planning process, and maximises the proportion of investment secured
by licencing which is invested in habitat.
Excellence in geo-visualisation and cartography – Charley Glynn, Tim Martin, Oliver Snowden and Andrew
Radburn at the Ordnance Survey for developing OS Open Zoomstack, the latest addition to the OS OpenData
portfolio. It makes OS open data more accessible, customisable and easier to use by providing a single,
customisable map of Great Britain to be used from national to local levels.
Impact on Policy – Jamie O’Donnell at the Department for Transport for creating a key online interactive map
of a proposed Major Road Network to feed into a government consultation which received over 1,000 web
views in the first week alone. Jamie then developed an internal interactive mapping tool that a range of
colleagues could use and access to support decision making and assess respondents' proposals on a
segment by segment basis quickly and accurately.
Contribution to the profession – The DGC Learning and Development Team at the Ministry of Defence has
been instrumental in formulating and redesigning the MoD Geospatial Analyst Function Competence
Framework, rebranding and enhancing it to align with GSE Geography profession. The team also designed
and ran the Geospatial Managers Development Programme, a tailored course, designed to support the
growth of GSE Geography within MoD by delivering development and professionalisation interventions for
staff across a range of grades.
See more of the great work our members do at bit.ly/GiGawards where there is a short description of all
shortlisted nominations from this years Geography in Government Awards
What some of our Geographers do

26. We are a new profession that is growing and looking for ways to support you. We already
have a number of benefits that you can access, but we’re always looking for new ideas and
support to help us grow the profession!
• Community – Part of a community of geographers with over 1200 members, with an online slack
community where you can come together and support each other by asking questions and sharing
experiences (Government Geography workspace at www.slack.com).
• Webinars – Monthly webinars to showcase the great work done by our members and enable us to learn
from each other and rack up some CPD points at the same time!
• Annual Conference – A free to attend annual conference which over 250 of you attended this year.
• Annual Awards – Awards that recognise the impact and contribution you make, with 5 individual categories
and an overall award which will be presented at the prestigious Royal Geographical Society (with IBG)
awards ceremony
• Promotion – If you are organising events or running external competitions we can help you promote.
• Recognised & Respected Profession – GSE is a recognised and respected profession across government and
the public sector and we also have a geography in GSE logo (see the bottom of the slides)!
• Mentoring – Part of the wider Government Science and Engineering, with access to all the benefits it offers,
including the GSE mentoring scheme (see https://goo.gl/5cboH1).
Benefits of membership

27. We are planning a number of new initiatives this year:
• Topic Notes – Produce the first of our topic notes as a source guidance on applying geography to
policy and delivery problems (see initial thoughts for topics on our slack community, we’d welcome
your thoughts to help us refine and prioritise the list).
• Updates – Provide more regular updates not just of what we’re doing, but of other news and events
that you might find helpful.
• Analytical Function – part of the cross-Government Analytical Function which will provide job roles,
networking and training opportunities as part of wider career development.
• Promoting geography and geographic thinking – working with other professions within the public
sector and external organisations to raise the profile of geography and the value of geographic
thinking in the design and delivery of the policies across the public sector.
Future Benefits

28. Thank you
Website: http://www.patrickrickles.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickrickles/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/mapperpat