Creating opportunities for lived experience to shape research

Lived experience insights are vital when planning research as they bring real-world insight and context that academic or practitioner perspectives alone can miss. Putting lived experience at the heart of research ensures that the right questions are asked, the most appropriate and ethical methods are used, and that the findings reflect the realities of people most affected.

In this session, a range of colleagues from across local government, academia, and the voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise sector will set out how they are working to create opportunities for lived experience to shape research.

• Neil Caton of Lancaster University will share upcoming opportunities to shape a major investment in research to transform mental health support.
• Matthew Parker of the NIHR Health Determinants Research Collaboration Blackpool will reflect on the experience of supporting youth-led research in Blackpool.
• Emma Rowicki of Boingboing Foundation, Sharon Hird and Matthew Parker of Healthwatch and Buket Kara of Lancaster University will share learning and emerging insights from the Research Ready Communities project.

Who should join?

This session will be relevant to anyone who is interested in:

• Using their own lived experience to shape research within Blackpool and the North West - in particular research on mental health support
• Hearing about how different organisations are supporting people to share their lived experience to positively impact research and practice
• Learning more about some of the challenges in shifting power and resource towards more community-led approaches

Location

This session will take place in-person in Meeting Room 3 in the Holiday Inn. 

Please see The Big Evidence Fortnight full programme for other sessions you might be interested in.