Creative and Participatory Inquiry in Practice 2026

Synopsis

The Inclusive Society Impact Hub at De Montfort University invites applications to a two‑day, in‑person research training intensive for Doctoral and Early Career Researchers interested in developing and strengthening their approach to creative and participatory inquiry across diverse disciplinary and applied contexts.

Research addressing today’s most complex societal challenges is increasingly shaped by expectations of collaboration, participation, and civic engagement, making relationship-building central to the research process. In contexts marked by inequality, social tension, and declining trust, methodological choices become particularly significant in how researchers engage with issues of voice, power, representation and care.

Bringing together leading researchers from multiple disciplines, the programme explores how creative and participatory approaches including co-design, storytelling, visual, material and performative methods, citizen science, and participatory workshops, can generate rigorous and socially responsive forms of inquiry. Such approaches can open up different ways of knowing, communicating, and engaging with complex social realities, particularly in contexts where conventional research methods may struggle to capture embodied, tacit, and community-embedded knowledge and experience

At the same time, working with creative and participatory approaches involves navigating significant methodological and ethical complexity. This includes managing multi‑modal and non‑traditional forms of data, exploring new approaches to analysis and addressing questions of rigour and situational ethics. Such work also raises important questions around dissemination and publication, particularly where pathways to impact extend beyond conventional academic outputs to include public events, visualisations, exhibitions and other forms of civic and community engagement.

Drawing on expertise from across De Montfort University, and using Leicester as a living context for research on urban sustainability, civic engagement and cultural policy, the programme offers a focused, interdisciplinary space to develop and refine research in progress. This intensive research training is aligned with De Montfort University’s UN Global SDG Hub 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities and is designed to support research that is analytically robust, ethically grounded and socially engaged.

Indicative Programme 

Across two days, participants will take part in a structured programme combining inspiring short talks, practical workshops, small‑group research labs and open panel discussions. The emphasis throughout is on developing research in progress with opportunities to contribute to a proposed Qualitative Marketing Research special issue on Participatory Approaches to Urban Sustainability. Participants will bring active projects to test ideas, refine methodological choices and learn through focused exchange with peers and senior researchers working across different disciplinary and applied contexts.  

Key Themes

• Cultural democracy, methodological value and responsibility
  How cultural and civic frameworks shape the recognition, legitimacy and impact of creative and participatory research, and inform researchers’ methodological choices and responsibilities.

• Working across disciplines and applied settings
  Learning from different disciplinary positions, institutional contexts and professional practices in collaborative research environments.

• Designing research with stakeholders and publics
  Participation, co‑production and accountability in research involving communities, partners and civic actors.

• Working with complexity in participatory research
  Collecting, managing and analysing multi‑modal data, and navigating questions of ethics, rigour, positionality and representation.

• Dissemination, engagement and impact
  Developing pathways for sharing knowledge beyond conventional academic outputs, including civic, policy and community‑facing forms of dissemination.

How to apply

How to Apply

Applications close 26 October 2026, with final registration and payment due by 9 November 2026.

To register your interest, click ‘Select Tickets’ to receive the full invitation and application guidance. 

Costs: £75 registration fee to include lunch on two days and informal drinks on the first evening (transport and accommodation is not included*)

*To support participation, the Institute for Responsible Business and Social Justice at De Montfort University will offer some limited financial support to contribute towards accommodation and catering costs for the two‑day programme in Leicester. We are committed to making the event as accessible as possible and encourage applicants who may face barriers to participation to get in touch so that we can discuss potential support on a case‑by‑case basis.

To support meaningful peer exchange and tailored developmental support, applicants will be asked to submit one of the following:

Option 1: Research Proposal / Project Outline (500–800 words)

For early-stage or developing projects and participants seeking to refine ideas, explore methods, or work through challenges in creative and participatory research.

Option 2: Working Paper (approx. 2000 words)

For more developed projects or draft papers. Participants will also receive focused peer feedback and be expected to review one/ two papers using a simple template prior to the event. Working papers do not need to be publication-ready, but should provide enough detail to support constructive discussion.

Applications are assessed on fit with the aims of the programme and readiness to engage rather than methodological expertise or project completeness.