How to write a policy brief
To discuss preparing a policy brief, and to access our policy brief templates, please get in touch at: TYPE@york.ac.uk
A policy brief is an important tool when presenting research and recommendations to a non-specialized audience. A good brief will:
- provide evidence-based policy advice to help readers make informed decisions.
- distill research findings in plain language and draw clear links to policy recommendations.
- act as a clear and concise stand-alone document that focuses on a single topic.
The brief should help the reader understand the problem, convince them that it needs to be addressed, and provide them with the policy recommendations to act upon.
Click on the headings below for more information about what should be included in your policy brief.
Policy briefs are typically aimed at politicians, civil servants, and other high profile policy makers responsible for creating and influencing policy. They are often busy and brevity is crucial so they can swiftly identify your key messages.
Before you begin writing, give consideration as to who your prospective audience is , their interest in and level of knowledge of the subject, the information they will need to reach a decision, and how open they will be to your recommendations. For example you may want to consider if there are implications from your evidence related to a particular group of people, a region or economic implications.
A policy brief should not be an extensive document. They typically contain around 1000 words, and in general, should not exceed two pages. This means that selection of content and plain language is critical to producing a successful, effective and clear policy brief.
There are different ways you can structure a policy brief, however to maximise engagement from your brief the front page would benefit from including an impactful image and key information you want to communicate, followed by the supporting evidence base:
- Background/Introduction
- Policy Recommendations
- Research Findings
- Conclusion
- References (where relevant)
- Images and graphs can be included if space allows
The author has autonomy on how these sections are visually presented and the titles of each section, however it’s important that these key elements of the section are included in a policy brief.
Every brief should open with a concise summary of the issue you are addressing and the purpose of your research. Typically, these will be no more than two or three short paragraphs or bullet points and will help busy readers quickly understand the context.
A good summary will help explain why you are writing the brief: what are the current policy issues on your topic and what real-life impact are they having on society and communities.
It could also include supporting empirical data/statistics that both engage the reader and highlight the importance of the issue.
This is the most important section of a policy brief and therefore should be the most carefully considered.
This section will provide a link for readers between the research findings and your recommendations. It’s useful to use persuasive language to present the recommendations but ensure that all arguments are rooted firmly and clearly in evidence produced by the research. A good policy recommendation section will win round readers, and convince them that yours is the best advice to solve the issue at hand.
When considering your recommendations, it’s important to:
- Be concise with the number of recommendations you suggest – no more than five is recommended.
- Ensure they are realistic, achievable and impact focussed.
- Ensure that your recommendations stand out within your policy brief and are easy to find.
- Ensure that your recommendations are not ideologically opposed to the target audience.
The research section is important because it provides the supporting evidence behind your policy recommendations.
The research section should give an overview of your methodology - how the data was collected and by who, the key findings of your research and most importantly an explanation of or justification for the key policy recommendations you’ve made.
Again, in this section it’s important to avoid technical language and ensure that you focus on highlighting the benefits and opportunities emerging from your research.
In terms of structure of this section, for visual purposes it may contain headings and subheadings as well as engaging visuals that support the key points you are making.
Space can be made to include hyperlinks to further reading within the brief. This would normally be included in the ‘research’ area of the brief. If you believe that a full reading list of additional references are important, a weblink could be included at the end of the brief alongside your contact details (e.g. email address). Remember, it’s likely that the brief will mainly be read as a virtual document and so hyperlinks can be used when necessary.
Include the name and email address of someone that readers can follow up with for more information.
It’s advisable to generate a DOI for your brief, this is a unique combination of numbers and letters that form a hyperlink to provide your brief with a permanent web address so your document can be found more easily. TYPE can generate one of these for you on request.
See below some examples of recent policy briefs produced by TYPE: