Service Britain comprises eleven discrete projects that together will answer the big questions; i) to what extent has the ideal of serving the common or public good been eroded in contemporary British society and in professional life?; ii) how might the ideals of professional and other service be enhanced and strengthened?; and, iii) what personal and public virtues might be promoted to underpin such professional and public service? The projects explore aspects of character and in particular the virtues of gratitude and service (along with related virtues such as generosity, purpose, humility and thrift) in the professions, education, voluntary sector, families, media, young people and in parents. The projects build on what is already known in the wake of the major JTF funded 2012-2015 project Gratitude Britain.
Combined, the projects enable an unprecedented opportunity to make an impact in the fields of academic, public and policy discourse on character and virtue in Britain. Service Britain will have substantial outputs which will include conducting research and transformative interventions with over 100,000 people in Britain. The outcomes will be significant, and include a measurable increased awareness of the importance of gratitude and service in Britain. Transformation will be measured with a commitment to rigorous scientific method and by investigating changes in public, professional and political visibility, norms, attitudes and behaviours. We will seek extensive collaborative work with the media, public bodies, voluntary sector organisations, schools and professions in order to facilitate the dissemination of findings. An enduring impact of Service Britain will be a new generation of young people growing up with an understanding of why beneficial service matters as well as a greater awareness (conceptual, moral and practical) of how key virtues contribute to human flourishing.
