CommonHealth Assets

The CommonHealth Assets project was a multi-disciplinary collaboration between researchers at Glasgow Caledonian University, Bournemouth University, Glasgow Centre for Population Health, Queens University Belfast, and the University of East London, working with community partners from across the UK. It focussed on how, for whom, and in what contexts community-led organisations (CLOs) can build and mobilise their ‘assets’ to impact on health and wellbeing of those living in deprived areas. It aimed to understand how different community organisations support their own unique communities, especially at a time when people are facing challenges such as expensive housing, inflation, and the energy crisis.

GCPH was a partner in this research being led by the Yunus Centre for Social Business and Health at Glasgow Caledonian University. The CommonHealth Assets project was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR).

Project objectives

The overarching project research questions which were investigated were:

Do CLOs impact on health and wellbeing and by what mechanisms and in what context are outcomes achieved?
What approaches are scalable, and which are specific, local solutions?
What are the key issues for sustainability of CLOs?

CommonHealth Assets 2

What is involved

Over a three-year period, this multi-site, multi-method project was working with 15 CLOs based in Scotland, England and Northern Ireland. A range of creative, innovative, and participatory research methods were used to explore the research questions. Detailed information on the research project, methods, resources, partners and team members can be found on the CommonHealth Assets website.

Lived Experience Panel

To ensure that the research project was informed by ongoing community expertise, voice, and perspective, a Lived Experience Panel (LEP) was established. This Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE) aspect of the project was led by GCPH.

Engaging and working with people in the communities that the research is taking place in was crucial to improve our understanding of the real-world contexts that impact how community organisations deliver their activities, support community members, and improve the health and wellbeing of the individuals who engage with them.

Composed of participants from the CLOs across the UK, members of the Panel met at key stages of the project, roughly every six months, and had roles in participating in activities relevant to the project phases and methods, and informing the interpretation of findings and the creation of outputs to ensure they are relevant and meaningful to community organisations.

Findings & outcomes

Over the course of the project, the Panel supported the research team in various aspects of the research including in developing and refining the project Programme Theories and in shaping the design of participant interviews and the Q study. The Panel also contributed to the project by assisting with participant recruitment, aiding in the interpretation of data and creating accessible outputs for community audiences, including a comic book based on the Programme Theories.

Taking part in the Panel also brought various benefits to its members including helping them to make connections across the UK, learn more about, and become more interested in, community development and public health research, and grow in their confidence.

Full details of the impact and outcomes of the Lived Experience Panel can be found in the evaluation report linked in project outputs.

Project findings

As part of the dissemination of the findings of the CommonHealth Assets project, publications drawing on different components of the study will be released throughout the year. These will be published on the CommonHealth Assets website.

Project outputs

Publications & Documents

News

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