The Curiosity Partnership

Source: https://www.york.ac.uk/business-society/research/spru/projects/the-curiosity-partnership/ Parent: https://www.york.ac.uk/about/departments/social-sciences/

To develop and evaluate a regional capacity building network: facilitating greater understanding, use and production of research in adult social care.

SPRU research team

Yvonne Birks
Mark Wilberforce
Kate Baxter
Louise Newbould
Laura Haviland
Liz Wands-Murray

External collaborators

*University of Sheffield*Professor Joanne Cooke, Professor in Research Capacity in School for Healthcare\ Dr Jon Burchell, Senior Lecturer in Management

*University of Hull *Professor Joe Cook, Professor in Organisational Behaviour and Human Resources Management

University of York\ Helen Weatherly, Reader in Health Economics, Centre for Health Economics

Newcastle University\ Dr Phillip Whitehead, Associate Professor, Social Work Education and Community Wellbeing

Collaborators include those involved in both planning and delivering adult social care (and other key stakeholders).

The Partnership

Involves four local authorities

Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council, Hull City Council, City of York Council, North Yorkshire County Council

Funder

Funded by the NIHR Health Services & Delivery Research (HS&DR)

Timescale

From 1 June 2020 to 31 May 2025

Watch our short animation to find out why you should join us on the journey.

https://youtu.be/ODw69hEDATg?si=jLaGGfNaD2MapSpG

Background

Social care does not receive the same investment in research as health care and other allied services. There are fewer opportunities for research training and funding, and a misconception that social care could not benefit from research in the same way as the NHS. In turn, social care staff generally do not feel as able to reach out for evidence, or engage in evidence creation for the benefit of practice. Universities and local authorities, working together with the wider sector and local citizens, have an opportunity to address local priorities with a new research partnership.

The Research Partnership

Over the next four years, a number of Universities and Local Authorities across Yorkshire & Humber are coming together to build research for the benefit of older people receiving social care. The Partnership will have a number of linked strands, including:

Work to identify local research priorities
Communities of Practice to lead local research agendas and build evidence-informed practice
Each local authority partner having a Research Champion who will help to make sure research is supported and to help to build a more research confident community.
Opportunities for secondments, placements, pump-priming research ideas, PhD study and more;
A Research Academy to share and build research skills.

Evaluation

The partnership will be subject to an ongoing evaluation based on the research capacity development for impact (RCDi) framework. This will enable us to better understand the success of the network in improving research capacity.

Contact us

Dr Mark Wilberforce

Ms Laura Haviland

Network Coordinator

Publications and presentations from the project are available from the York Research Database.

The research sits within our Evaluation: service models research theme. Read about our research themes.

For more information contact the Network Coordinator, Laura Haviland.