Webinar roundup: Making research engaging, 10-year Health Plan and Engaging the Hard to Reach.
Over autumn and into winter (2025) our team have attended many online webinars, here are our key takeaways from a few:
‘Making research engaging’
by Gateshead HDRC (NIHR Research Support Service Specialist Centre for Public Health Research)
Presented by Dr Michael Johansen (NIHR HDRC Research Lead)
What was the webinar about?
Exploring how to make research engaging, with a focus on community members and among fellow academics.
Lauren’s Takeaways (Co-production coordinator/co-researcher)
Think about how to make research engaging from the beginning of a project
Don't refer to people as resources talk about people and what you can offer people
Try to think about different methods to switch things up e.g ethnographies, rapid reviews – you’re asking participants to do something new, so can you bend towards them to?
Be visible in your workplace e.g try sitting next to different people
‘Community assets and the 10-year health plan’
By Mobilizing Community Assets
Presented by
Alex Coulter (Director of the National Centre for Creative Health’s, NCCH)
Linda Thomson (Senior Research Fellow, Health Inequalities, Mobilising Community Assets)
What was the webinar about?
The webinar explored the Mobilising Community Assets programme’s relevance and foresight in relation to the UK Government’s plan ‘Fit for the Future: 10 Year Health Plan for England’.
Lauren’s Takeaways (Co-production coordinator/co-researcher)
It was interesting to hear the priorities of the health plan, including key taglines of hospitals to communities, analog to digital and prevention rather than sickness
I was surprised to hear that creative health was not mentioned/a key part of the plan. However, it is encouraging to hear more about the work of the NCCH, who we know acknowledge the link between health and creative practice.
‘Engaging the hard to reach’ (2 part series)
Presented by Kawal Kaur (Insight specialist)
What was the webinar about?
Webinar 1: Explored who is often excluded or underserved in research and marketing, why that happens, and why it matters.
Webinar 2: Took the learning from the first webinar into action and included: ‘Recognising common engagement traps and how to avoid them’ and ‘Understanding how to design with communities, not for them’
Sumaiyah’s Takeaways (co-researcher)
Sumaiyah attended webinar 2
I found it really interesting how inclusivity is seen as a non-negotiable now: prioritising trust and community over attendance/numbers as a measure of success.
It was fascinating to discuss the ways outreach can be designed to ensure comfortability of particular groups and co-creation, rather than expecting attendance without any effort of outreach or collaboration.
This was a really helpful webinar that allowed me to understand the need for inclusion throughout the research process, rather than at the end.
We look forward to attending more webinars in the new year!