Overview
- Reports published on June 17–18 say Department for Education researchers from Policy Lab joined members of the public in Grand Theft Auto Online as part of a qualitative engagement project run in 2024.
- Policy Lab described the sessions as a way to explore participants’ lived experience and said virtual play created an ‘emotionally safe’ space that helped some people open up and allowed access to those in remote locations.
- News coverage quoted specific in‑game missions used during interviews, including robberies and attacks, which opponents have seized on as evidence the method was inappropriate for taxpayer‑funded staff time.
- Opposition figures have criticised the work as a poor use of public funds and the government has said ministers are reviewing the initiative and examining Policy Lab’s projects and value for money.
- Policy Lab is a small, design‑led civil service unit hosted by the Department for Education that uses unconventional methods such as art, role‑play and virtual engagement to inform policymaking, and its future activity is now under scrutiny.