This project for the Local Better Regulation Office reviewed the existing policy, practice and academic literature relating to the citizen in regulation, encompassing citizen involvement and participation, co-regulation and co-production. The intention was to highlight potentially fruitful areas for further exploration by the LBRO.
The project specification required an examination of ‘the current evidence base in relation to the theory and practice of citizen involvement in co-delivery of services, including regulatory services in particular’ in order to gain ‘insight into the characteristics of services areas in which it would seem citizen involvement in outcome delivery might be increased.’
The research included the following:
- a review of the academic, policy and practice oriented literature around the co-production of public services, and co-regulation in particular, for instances of citizen involvement;
- an assessment of the impact of instances of citizen involvement, in particular as may apply to co-regulation, identifying the factors that both enable and inhibit such involvement, and thus the areas where successful involvement may be expected to be attained;
- identifcation of where further research is required, in particular to answer the latter question. This project was desk-based, evaluating the evidence base, drawing on the existing literature and reports.
The Citizen in Regulation: Final Report
This chapter reviewed the existing literature on the perceived benefits of citizen participation in public services, exploring where evidence indicated that citizen involvement may be applied in the context of local regulation to improve regulatory outcomes.