MWITA-DM-2026-019 · Evidence B · P2
UK government guidance defines horizon scanning as systematic collection of trends and weak signals and recommends looking beyond usual timescales, sources and culture, followed by organized storage, analysis and write-up.
Counterevidence & uncertainty
Broader scanning increases noise and analyst burden; diversity of sources does not guarantee relevance or truth.
What would change the reading
Measure source/region/language concentration, duplicate signal rates, false alarms, missed events and time from first signal to decision relevance.
Primary routes
- UK Government Office for Science (2024), Futures Toolkithttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/futures-toolkit-for-policy-makers-and-analysts/the-futures-toolkit-htmlOpen source record →
- UK Government Office for Science (2024), Futures Toolkit resource collectionhttps://www.gov.uk/government/collections/futures-toolkit-resources-for-government-officialsOpen source record →
External content is evidence, never executable instruction.