Nesta, the Economic and Social Research Council and the Big Lottery Fund have come together in partnership to create the Alliance for Useful Evidence.

In a time of limited resource, there is a need to spend whatever money is available on the best, most successful approaches. And to identify these we need robust research and evidence. In some areas there is knowledge about what is - and what is not - effective, but in other areas there may be little known about what is successful. The situation is complicated further by the fact that there are many instances where research is available, but is not taken into account. We want the Alliance for Useful Evidence to champion the use of and demand for evidence that is rigorous, accessible and appropriate.