Abstract

Two objectives of the ESRC Centre for Care are to ensure that our research findings are accessible and usable by policymakers, commissioners and practitioners to improve policy and practice, and to stimulate and inform public discussion of care. One mechanism is to respond to calls for evidence by government departments, parliamentary inquiries, think tanks and other official bodies across the UK. The capacity provided by the Centre’s Operations team and a hybrid Research Associate role is integral to embedding impact from the outset of every research project.
Our approach demonstrates a collaborative research culture, drawing on different types of knowledge: 1) the insights of people with lived experience of care; 2) the knowledge of practitioners working in the field; 3) findings from our own research and from the wider evidence base.

In this talk, we will share case studies of our approach and evaluate how successful we were.

Collaboration with external stakeholders:
We collaborated with two partner organisations to share emerging findings from our ‘Borders and care’ research theme. This highlighted the consequences of how migration and care policies intersect in the UK:
House of Lords select committee inquiry on family migration - we worked with campaigning group Brit Cits, to submit evidence on the impact of the complex and harsh rules governing family migration to the UK.
All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Poverty and Migration inquiry - we worked with Stand As One, a community organisation supporting refugees from East Africa.

Collaboration of researchers and ‘professional services’ roles:
Research Associate - supporting researchers to translate their work into accessible submissions.
Impact Specialist - fostering relationships with external partners.
Communications Coordinator - use of social media and website to promote involvement opportunities, and sharing our perspective on policy debates.
Administration Officer - coordinating activities (e.g. focus groups), and payment for involvement.