FLF Participatory Research Workshop

A 1-day in person workshop on Participatory Research was hosted by Professor Fay Hield (UKRI FLF Fellow) at the University of Sheffield on Friday 14th March 2025. This workshop was supported by a UKRI Flexible Creative Fund award as part of the UKRI FLF Development Network's activities, and was aimed at UKRI FLF Fellows and their Project Managers with an interest in the following:

• The benefits of Participatory Research are being more widely recognised and such approaches seem to be on the rise in funding priorities and the general research landscape
• Participatory Research approaches use unconventional structures that are unfamiliar to existing systems in HE institutions.
• Delivering an FLF that engages with Participatory Research methodologies has thrown up several issues that we are recognizing sector wide
• Drawing together a network of FLFs with experience of, or a desire to, engage with PR methodologies has potential to:
• • better understand these issues
  • contribute to conversations about institutional structures and necessary change, and
  • support academics beginning their journey into this approach to navigate systems.

The workshop comprised 22 people. The mix of academic (FLF and RA); PhD students; professional service and community partner roles made for lively, respectful and fruitful conversations. Much knowledge was shared between all parties. 

Included in this submission are:

• An outline of the programme for the day
• Live scribe slides which were prepared during the workshop by Nifty Fox Creative.

The project is affiliated with the UKRI FLF project, Access Folk (MR/V023837/1) and was supported by UKRI FLF Development Network Flexible Creative Fund Award ref no. FCF0005.