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Christopher Lawton

christopher lawton

Senior Lecturer

Nottingham Business School

Staff Group(s)
Academic Division Department of Economics Nottingham Civic Exchange

Role

Chris’ role combines quasi-commercial consultancy with academic research, the delivery of learning and teaching activities and contributions to curriculum enhancement.   He has delivered a series of projects on the labour market, society, identity and development of Nottingham, including for the Nottingham Post as part of the Great Nottingham Debates (2014 and 2016), which include emphasis on the barriers and drivers to graduate retention and the role of Nottingham Trent University as a local ‘anchor institution’.  Chris is the Learning and Teaching Representative (LTR) for the Economics Department and has developed a number of student-led projects in problem-based learning. He is a fellow of the Higher Education Academy.

Career overview

Previous posts include Senior Research Advisor at the East Midlands Development Agency (emda), where Chris led on the production of a ‘regional skills priority statement’ to inform the development of the Government’s skills strategy in autumn 2010, and managed a series of major external research projects, including a study with the Met Office on the links between Climate Change and economic development. Prior to this, Chris was seconded to the Sector Skills Development Agency/UK Commission for Employment and Skills to manage a series of research projects supporting the implementation of the 2006 Leitch Review of Skills.

Research areas

Chris’ research interests include employment and the quality of work, migration and demographic change, and skills, education and training.  He is currently working on a project exploring the role of universities in the Midlands in supporting student and graduate entrepreneurship, and the wider economic impact of this activity.

Sponsors and collaborators

As a member of the research and consultancy centre in Nottingham Business School, the Economic Strategy Research Bureau, Chris’ principle role is to produce research and analysis for a range of projects for local and central Government. Recent work includes studies on employment & skills and education & training issues, enterprise, migration, and graduate retention for:

  • Nottingham City Council
  • The Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire (D2N2) Local Enterprise Partnership
  • East Midlands Councils
  • The Nottingham Post
  • The Tramlink Consortium (NET Phase 2)
  • The Midlands Enterprise Universities

Press expertise

employment quality

skills

education and migration