Thanks to Research England's funding nine projects were awarded in the second round of the Participatory Research Fund

Projects ran from January to July 2023 and brought local people, communities and University researchers together to create knowledge, build strong partnerships and make a positive change in the city of Bristol.

Projects were selected for their relevance to the ‘Futures in partnership’ objective in the Global Civic Pillar of the University’s strategy.

Building socially-just mathematics classrooms: Local teachers as curriculum designers and agents of change

Tracy Helliwell, senior lecturer and teacher-educator in the School of Education, partnered with mathematics teachers at Gordano School, a secondary school in Portishead. Gordano School recently moved away from setting in mathematics towards mixed attainment grouping, to offer more opportunities for success to those identified as vulnerable or disadvantaged. This project aimed to develop effective curriculum materials and inclusive pedagogies for classes of mixed ability students, through Close-to-Practice (CtP) research, and improve the mathematical learning experiences of all students.  

The project resulted in a set of fully resourced classroom tasks and activities for years 7, 8 and 9. Conference papers will be presented by the team at the British Society for Research in Learning Mathematics conference, and Tracy is analysing the rich data set with the aim of publishing in an academic journal in 2024.

Untapped stories: Understanding a nursery school's embodied and affective experiences of the pandemic through participatory arts-based approaches

Frances Giampapa, a senior lecturer in the School of Education at the University of Bristol, partnered with Ilminster Avenue Nursery School in Knowle West, south Bristol, to explore the impact of the pandemic through co-produced arts-based methods.

Frances and her team – Rachel, research associate, Nick, a filmmaker, and Luci, an artist – held several workshops with parents and nursery staff to facilitate conversations around their experiences of the pandemic. They spent a lot of time on site at the nursery building visibility, familiarity and trust, and worked closely with the school’s family link worker to build a rapport with the nursery school community.  Creative outputs of the workshops, including cardboard houses lit from within and excerpts from personal stories, were showcased at exhibitions at the nursery school, the SS Great Britain, and the School of Education.

View the project website and watch a video about this project on YouTube.

Building Courage – Towards a framework for Learning in South Bristol

David Bainton, Senior Associate Teacher in the School of Education, partnered with Merchants Academy, a secondary school in South Bristol, and IDYOMS, the Institute for Development of Young Minds in Sport to create innovative ways to reduce educational disadvantage.

Neuroscience tells us that adolescence is a time of heightened brain plasticity. The tendency for exploration and risk-taking offers potential for a leap in learning – if we can create the conditions for building academic courage. The project team worked with teachers and students to identify approaches and strategies to foster a culture of courageous learning in the classroom. This led to the development of a model of learning they call the ASPIRE model. Their data indicates that this approach can overcome some of the barriers to engagement and learning that many disadvantaged students experience. The team are now seeking to extend the work of this pilot project.

Watch a video about this project on YouTube.

Co-designing and Broadening the Scope of Grief and Baby Loss Booklet

Lesel Dawson, Associate Professor in the School of Humanities, partnered with charities, bereaved parents, medical professionals and an artist to develop a new edition of a booklet on baby loss. Lesel had already developed a booklet as part of a previous round of PRF funding and wanted to refine it, in response to feedback, to be more inclusive. The new booklet spanned subjects including miscarriage, the death of one or more babies from a multiple pregnancy, and ending a pregnancy for medical reasons (TFMR).

The project team ran in-person and online focus groups targeting underrepresented groups, developed new sections in collaboration with the charity partners (Sands, Twins Trust and Antenatal Results and Choices (ARC)), and commissioned new illustrations by artist Jayde Perkin. The expanded booklet is titled Pregnancy, Baby Loss and the Grief Journey, and published in print and online alongside an Easy Read version. The team plan to write an academic article reflecting on the process of co-creating the resource, and providing a model for charities and researchers considering similar methodologies.

Global Heritage, Local History (decolonising the University’s mineral collection)

Claudia Hildebrandt, a technical specialist in the School of Earth Sciences, worked with South Asian communities in Bristol and beyond via an online platform and in-person events, to pilot a new approach to collaborative collection research.

The project invited public contributions of previously untold stories, memories and experiences relating to the University’s mineral collection. This project delved into the narratives behind rocks and gemstones from Myanmar (Burma), Sri Lanka (Ceylon), and India, exploring how colonial influences and dominant scientific classifications of the global north have shaped these narratives. It sought to enhance curatorial practices, make narratives more inclusive by acknowledging and valuing all sources of knowledge, and build a more comprehensive and equitable understanding of Bristol’s global geological collection. View the project website.

Understanding barriers for ethnic minority groups to audio recording recruitment discussion in clinical trials to enhance participation

Shoba Dawson, a Senior Research Associate at the School of Population Health Sciences, worked with Saba Faisal, a PhD candidate, to explore barriers and concerns around informed consent in clinical trials. They worked with community partners to recruit participants from underrepresented groups, and held in person and online workshops with South Asian, Somali and Chinese communities. They produced a film in multiple languages (English, Urdu, Mandarin, Cantonese and Bangla) which will be used to help build trust in the informed consent process in future clinical trials. They also worked with an illustrator to make visual storyboards of the discussions from the workshops.  

Community Auditing of Risk Assessments (CARA): updating policy and practice regarding blood borne viruses in local institutions

Catherine Dodds, a senior lecturer in the School of Policy Studies, partnered with local organisations, charities and people with lived experience to reduce stigma around blood borne viruses.

Catherine and her two co-researchers worked with five diverse workplaces and institutions in Bristol to review and update their health and safety policies and procedures relating to the management of BBV risk. These included an education and research institution, a sporting team, a charity that supports people at risk of homelessness, a community arts organisation and an emergency service.  

With support from expert advisory group members as well as attendees at a policy sharing event, the team created a key resources document that will support national partners to lobby the UK Health and Safety Executive to update their blood borne virus guidance.

Read a case study with more details of this project or watch a video about it on YouTube.

Does eco-labelling on meal options prompt diners to make more sustainable choices: A pilot study in University of Bristol Cafes

Katie De-loyde, a Research Associate in the School of Psychological Science, partnered with University of Bristol cafes to investigate whether eco-labelling influences customers to make more sustainable choices. In collaboration with a design agency, the project created sandwich labels giving information on three aspects of sustainability: greenhouse gas emissions, impact on biodiversity, and water usage. The labels were added to sandwiches in University of Bristol cafes during the experimental period. Sales figures were examined, and an online app asked customers about their decision-making process and feelings about the labels. This is a pilot study that will form the basis for a bigger study that will encompass focus groups and more food outlets.

SPIN Labs (the Secrecy, Power and Ignorance research Network)

Elspeth Van Veeren, Associate Professor in the School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies, has partnered with the Pervasive Media Studio at Watershed in central Bristol. Together they will hold creative workshops that explore the subject of secrecy. These workshops, co-developed by the PVS’s network of creative producers, will develop prototype activities and interventions that can be used elsewhere.

Note: this project was awarded funding for two years and will continue into 2024.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3_f_RI1M-Po