Exploring the Assets of Community Led Organisations
Our Centre for Evidence and Social Innovation (CESI) facilities research that connects a number of Schools and disciplines across Queen’s University. CESI colleagues have been awarded funding from the National Institute for Health Research to explore the impact of community-led organisations on health and wellbeing in disadvantaged communities. The £1.5m project is a collaboration between researchers at Glasgow Caledonian University, Bournemouth University, Glasgow Centre for Population Health, Queen’s University Belfast and University of East London and community-led organisations in Scotland, England and Northern Ireland (including the Colin Neighbourhood Partnership, one of QUB/CESI’s Innovation Zones).
The Common Health Assets project is a mixed methods, realist evaluation and economic appraisal of how community-led organisations impact on the health and wellbeing of people living in deprived areas. The team includes experts on assets-based approaches, health economics, social enterprise and realist approaches to research. Methodologically, the project is an exciting combination of qualitative methods, policy analysis, photovoice, Q methodology and economic evaluation. School of SSESW’s Liam O’Hare and Karen Galway (School of Nursing and Midwifery) will be managing the Northern Ireland input, along with support from local partners in community-led organisations including the Colin Neighbourhood Partnership and Bogside and Brandywell Health Forum (with SPRING Social prescribing).
Karen commented on the project: ‘This research is important because policy attention on community approaches to health and wellbeing has generally evolved faster than the evidence base. However, there is evidence starting to emerge that sustained positive health and social outcomes can only occur when people and communities have opportunities to manage their own futures, as well as having access to the skills and capabilities needed to do so.’