Category / Social Work and Social Policy

Webinar: Develop a career in research methodology with the NIHR Pre-doctoral Fellowship – 8 December

Funding opportunities, NHS

NIHR Pre-doctoral Fellowship

Discover more about the NIHR Pre-Doctoral Fellowship and what makes a competitive application in this interactive webinar.

8 December 2022 at 1pm

The NIHR Pre-Doctoral Fellowship supports people in England starting or advancing a career in health and social care research methodology.

It offers early career researchers the training, support and funding to undertake a PhD in their chosen methodology, or to develop a methodology career in roles relevant to health and social care research.

This one hour webinar will provide the background of the scheme, outline the eligibility and application process, and share hints and tips how to develop a competitive application.

Attend the webinar to:

  • Learn about the scope of the scheme, the application process and details of the next round launching in January 2023
  • Understand the benefits of undertaking a Pre-Doctoral
  • Fellowship first hand from past award holders and what can be achieved through undertaking the award
  • Receive information about what makes a competitive application

Register for the webinar

 

Your local branch of the NIHR RDS (Research Design Service) is based within the BU Clinical Research Unit (BUCRU) should you need help with grant applications. We advise on all aspects of developing an application and can review application drafts as well as put them to a mock funding panel (run by RDS South West) known as Project Review Committee, which is a fantastic opportunity for researchers to obtain a critical review of a proposed grant application before this is sent to a funding body or if you’re hoping to resubmit the panel can provide some excellent tips and feedback.

Contact us as early as possible to benefit fully from the advice

Feel free to call us on 01202 961939 or send us an email.

Public Involvement – How can VOICE help your research?

Could using VOICE – National Public Involvement and Network Collaboration Platform help with public involvement for your grant application and research?

Find out more about VOICE. Join  ‘VOICE: Celebrating 15 years of impact’ on Thursday 8th December, 3-5pm to celebrate all that VOICE members have achieved and the impact they have had in research and innovation.

VOICE: Celebrating 15 Years of Impact Tickets, Thu 8 Dec 2022 at 15:00 | Eventbrite

Hear from VOICE members, researchers, businesses, and the VOICE team, sharing their stories and experiences of VOICE. This will be a great opportunity to learn about how VOICE began, some of the key programmes and initiatives that they are involved in, and their vision for the future.

https://www.voice-global.org/

 

Please do get in touch if you’d like to discuss public involvement in your research further – we welcome initial informal conversation to share ideas. kejupp@bournemouth.ac.uk; wardl@bournemouth.ac.uk; voice@bournemouth.ac.uk

 

Congratulations to Dr. Orlanda Harvey on her new publication

international, PG research, Publishing, Women's Academic Network, writing

This morning the editor of the international journal Sociological Research Online email to inform us that the paper “Using a range of communication tools to interview a hard-to-reach population” has been accepted for publication [1].  This methods paper, on the topic of conducting in-depth interviews, grew out of Orlanda’s postdoctoral research into support for people who are recreational (non-medical) users of Anabolic Androgenic Steroids (AAS).  This is the seventh paper from her PhD research [2-7].

Well done,

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

Centre for Midwifery & Perinatal Health (CMMPH)

 

References:

  1. Harvey, O., van Teijlingen, E., Parrish, M. Using a range of communication tools to interview a hard-to-reach population, Sociological Research Online (accepted).
  2. Harvey, O., van Teijlingen, E. (2022) The case for ‘anabolics’ coaches: selflessness versus self-interest? Performance Enhancement & Health, 10(3) August, 100230
  3. Harvey, O., van Teijlingen, E., Parrish, M. (2022) Mixed-methods research on androgen abuse – a review, Current Opinion in Endocrinology & Diabetes 29(6):586-593.
  4. Harvey, O., Parrish, M., van Teijlingen, E, Trenoweth, S. (2021) Libido as a reason to use non-prescribed Anabolic Androgenic Steroids, Drugs: Education, Prevention & Policy 29(3):276-288,DOI: 10.1080/09687637.2021.1882940
  5. Harvey, O., Parrish, M., van Teijlingen, E., Trenoweth, S. (2020) Support for non-prescribed Anabolic Androgenic Steroids users: A qualitative exploration of their needs Drugs: Education, Prevention & Policy 27(5): 377-386. DOI 10.1080/09687637.2019.1705763
  6. Harvey, O., Keen, S., Parrish, M., van Teijlingen, E. (2019) Support for people who use Anabolic Androgenic Steroids: A Systematic Literature Review into what they want and what they access. BMC Public Health 19: 1024 https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-019-7288-x https://rdcu.be/bMFon
  7. Harvey, O., (2019) ECR Spotlight: From Social Work to Studying Steroids, HED Matters 2(2):16-19.

Last Chance: Escapeline presents at this week’s Community Voices webinar

Join us this Wednesday 9th November from 12-1pm where local charity Escapeline will share their work on preventing child exploitation in rural areas.

The Community Voices webinar series is a collaboration between the BU Research Centre for Seldom Heard Voices and the BU PIER (Public Involvement in Education and Research) partnership. Our aim is to provide a platform to amplify the voices of community groups, organisations, activists and campaigners who are conducting incredible work to promote inclusion and advance social justice across our region and further afield. The webinars provide an opportunity to hear about this work and to engage in discussions and conversations on these topics.

Please book a free place www.bournemouth.ac.uk/cshv

NIHR Grant Applications Seminar ONLINE – 22 November 2022

Funding opportunities, NHS

  

Dear colleagues

– Do you have a great idea for research in health, social care or public health?
– Are you planning to submit a grant application to NIHR?

Our popular seminar continues online and will take place on Tuesday 22nd November 2022 from 10.00am – 12.30pm.

The seminar provides an overview of NIHR funding opportunities and research programme remits, requirements and application processes. We will give you top tips for your application and answer specific questions with experienced RDS South West advisers.

We will also be hearing from Jane Fearnside about the NIHR Invention for Innovation (i4i) programme. She will be giving an overview of the programme, the assessment process and what the funding panels are looking for.

We also have a limited number of 20-minute 1-to-1 appointments available after the seminar should you wish to discuss your proposed study with an RDS adviser.

Find out more and book a place.

Your local branch of the NIHR RDS (Research Design Service) is based within the BU Clinical Research Unit (BUCRU)

We can help with your application. We advise on all aspects of developing an application and can review application drafts as well as put them to a mock funding panel (run by RDS South West) known as Project Review Committee, which is a fantastic opportunity for researchers to obtain a critical review of a proposed grant application before this is sent to a funding body.

Contact us as early as possible to benefit fully from the advice

Feel free to call us on 01202 961939 or send us an email.

Reminder – REF Roles expressions of interest deadline fast approaching!

REF Subjects, Research assessment

We are currently recruiting to a number of roles to help support preparation for our next REF submission. The deadline for expressions of interest is the 11th October 2022.

We are also now welcoming expressions of interest for REF UOA 18 Lead for Law.

Further information is outlined below…

The roles are recruited through an open and transparent process, which gives all academic staff the opportunity to put themselves forward. Applications from underrepresented groups (e.g. minority ethnic, declared disability) are particularly welcome.

We are currently preparing submissions to thirteen units (otherwise known as UOAs). Each unit has a leadership team with at least one leader, an output and impact champion. The leadership team are supported by a panel of reviewers who assess the research from the unit. This includes research outputs (journal articles, book chapters, digital artefacts and conference proceedings) and impact case studies.

We currently have vacancies in the following roles:

UOA Leads – Review Panel Members –
4 – Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience 3 – Allied Health Professions, Dentistry, Nursing and Pharmacy
11 – Computer Science and Informatics 4 – Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience
18 – Law 11 – Computer Science and Informatics
27 – English Language and Literature 12 – Engineering
Output Champion – 14 – Geography and Environmental Studies
11 – Computer Science and Informatics 15 – Archaeology
14 – Geography and Environmental Studies 17 – Business and Management Studies
Impact Champion –  18 – Law
4 – Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience 20 – Social Work and Social Policy
11 – Computer Science and Informatics 24 – Sport and Exercise Sciences, Leisure and Tourism
12 – Engineering 27 – English Language and Literature
14 – Geography and Environmental Studies 32 – Art and Design: History, Practice and Theory
24 – Sport and Exercise Sciences, Leisure and Tourism 34 – Communication, Culture and Media Studies, Library and Information Management

All roles require a level of commitment which is recognised accordingly with time to review, attend meetings, and take responsibility for tasks.

Undertaking a UOA role can be enjoyable and rewarding as two of our current champions testify:

“As UOA Outputs Champion you develop a detailed knowledge of all the great work that colleagues are doing related to the subject, and the different outlets used for disseminating their work.  As an outputs committee member, you also get to know what research is going on across BU, and it’s interesting to see the differences between disciplines.  It’s a good way develop your knowledge of the bigger picture of BU’s research, and also to understand the importance of REF and how it works in practice.  You do spend quite a bit of time chasing colleagues to put their outputs on BRIAN for REF compliance but hopefully they forgive you!”

Professor Adele Ladkin – UOA 24 Output Champion

“As a UoA 17 impact champion, I work closely with the UoA 17 impact team to encourage the development of a culture of impact across BUBS. I try to pop into Department / research group meetings when I can to discuss impact, and I’ve enjoyed meeting people with a whole range of research interests. Sometimes it can be tough to engage people with impact – understandably; everyone is busy – so it’s important to be enthusiastic about the need for our BU research to reach the public. Overall, the role is about planting the seeds to get researchers thinking about the impact their work might have in the future (as well as the impact they have already had, sometimes without realising!)”

Dr Rafaelle Nicholson – UOA 17 Impact Champion

 How to apply

All those interested should put forward a short case (suggested length of one paragraph) as to why they are interested in the role and what they think they could bring to it. These should be clearly marked with the relevant role and unit and emailed to ref@bournemouth.ac.uk by 11th October 2022.

Further detail on the roles, the process of recruitment and selection criteria can be found here:

UOA Leader Output Champion Impact Champion Panel Reviewer
Role Descriptor Role Descriptor Role Descriptor Role Descriptor
Process and criteria for selection Process and criteria for selection Process and criteria for selection Process and criteria for selection

For further information please contact ref@bournemouth.ac.uk, a member of current UOA Team or your Deputy Dean Research and Professional Practice with queries.

What can be done for more at-risk young people to become entrepreneurs?

The struggle to find sustainable employment is heightened among young people not in employment, education or training (NEET) and living in deprived communities. Despite initiatives to create more jobs, there is evidence to suggest a strong interest in entrepreneurship among young people in the UK.

A study on NEET young people’s views on entrepreneurship showed that 54% of 18 to 30-year-olds from the most disadvantaged regions in the UK would like to start a business. However, 54% of these young people are terrified of actually starting a business; only 22% know where to seek business advice and support, and only 8% would describe themselves as entrepreneurial.

According to the latest OECD Employment Outlook report, routine and low-skilled jobs are expected to decline by 12% in the UK by 2024. Although recent findings from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) show that at least 70% of 15- year-olds in the UK aspire to professional and managerial careers requiring tertiary education, low-achieving students have no intention of continuing their education after secondary school and high-achieving students from disadvantaged backgrounds are less likely to realise such careers because they have a lower chance of pursuing post-secondary education.

What can be done?

The SPEED-You-UP project seeks to improve the entrepreneurial and employability skills of at-risk and NEET young people in deprived coastal regions of England, France, Belgium, and the Netherlands. By encouraging young people’s appreciation of their talents and abilities as a springboard for launching a business, the project takes young people on a journey of self-discovery and confidence building. Through the project, young people have the opportunity to experiment with a business idea, which helps to raise their confidence and motivation.

According to three participants with no prior knowledge of starting a business and experiencing low self-belief: “Speed You-Up really helped us identify who we are and what we are trying to do and what we’re capable of doing.”

Would you like to get more involved in preparing our next REF submission?

REF Subjects, Research assessment

We are recruiting to a number of roles to help support preparation for our next REF submission. The roles are recruited through an open and transparent process, which gives all academic staff the opportunity to put themselves forward. Applications from underrepresented groups (e.g. minority ethnic, declared disability) are particularly welcome.

We are currently preparing submissions to thirteen units (otherwise known as UOAs). Each unit has a leadership team with at least one leader, an output and impact champion. The leadership team are supported by a panel of reviewers who assess the research from the unit. This includes research outputs (journal articles, book chapters, digital artefacts and conference proceedings) and impact case studies.

We currently have vacancies in the following roles:

UOA Leads – Review Panel Members –
4 – Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience 3 – Allied Health Professions, Dentistry, Nursing and Pharmacy
11 – Computer Science and Informatics 4 – Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience
27 – English Language and Literature 11 – Computer Science and Informatics
Output Champion – 12 – Engineering
11 – Computer Science and Informatics 14 – Geography and Environmental Studies
14 – Geography and Environmental Studies 15 – Archaeology
Impact Champion – 17 – Business and Management Studies
4 – Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience 18 – Law
11 – Computer Science and Informatics 20 – Social Work and Social Policy
12 – Engineering 24 – Sport and Exercise Sciences, Leisure and Tourism
14 – Geography and Environmental Studies 27 – English Language and Literature
18 – Law 32 – Art and Design: History, Practice and Theory
24 – Sport and Exercise Sciences, Leisure and Tourism 34 – Communication, Culture and Media Studies, Library and Information Management

All roles require a level of commitment which is recognised accordingly with time to review, attend meetings, and take responsibility for tasks.

Undertaking a UOA role can be enjoyable and rewarding as two of our current champions testify:

“As UOA Outputs Champion you develop a detailed knowledge of all the great work that colleagues are doing related to the subject, and the different outlets used for disseminating their work.  As an outputs committee member, you also get to know what research is going on across BU, and it’s interesting to see the differences between disciplines.  It’s a good way develop your knowledge of the bigger picture of BU’s research, and also to understand the importance of REF and how it works in practice.  You do spend quite a bit of time chasing colleagues to put their outputs on BRIAN for REF compliance but hopefully they forgive you!”

Professor Adele Ladkin – UOA 24 Output Champion

“As a UoA 17 impact champion, I work closely with the UoA 17 impact team to encourage the development of a culture of impact across BUBS. I try to pop into Department / research group meetings when I can to discuss impact, and I’ve enjoyed meeting people with a whole range of research interests. Sometimes it can be tough to engage people with impact – understandably; everyone is busy – so it’s important to be enthusiastic about the need for our BU research to reach the public. Overall, the role is about planting the seeds to get researchers thinking about the impact their work might have in the future (as well as the impact they have already had, sometimes without realising!)”

Dr Rafaelle Nicholson – UOA 17 Impact Champion

 How to apply

All those interested should put forward a short case (suggested length of one paragraph) as to why they are interested in the role and what they think they could bring to it. These should be clearly marked with the relevant role and unit and emailed to ref@bournemouth.ac.uk by 11th October 2022.

Further detail on the roles, the process of recruitment and selection criteria can be found here:

UOA Leader Output Champion Impact Champion Panel Reviewer
Role Descriptor Role Descriptor Role Descriptor Role Descriptor
Process and criteria for selection Process and criteria for selection Process and criteria for selection Process and criteria for selection

For further information please contact ref@bournemouth.ac.uk, a member of current UOA Team or your Deputy Dean Research and Professional Practice with queries.

Insights into patient voices on digital access to health care – Journal of Community Nursing

NHS

Mel Hughes, associate professor in social work and deputy director of the Research Centre for Seldom Heard Voice; Stevie Corbin-Clarke, research assistant based within the National Centre for Post Qualifying Social Work and Research Centre for Seldom Heard Voices; and Peter Greensmith, chair, NHS England South West Transformation Patient Reference Group and previous chair of Weymouth and Portland Patient Participation Groups (PPGs) have had their paper ‘Insights into patient voices on digital access to health care’ published in the Journal of Community Nursing.

The paper analyses research that was conducted around the impact of digital exclusion on people at risk of marginalisation. Read this paper and others in the August/September edition issue, here: https://www.jcn.co.uk/journals/latest-issue/jcn

The research, commissioned by National Voices (a coalition of 170 health and care charities in England), also informed a national report exploring the impact of digital exclusion on access to services. You can find the report, here: https://www.nationalvoices.org.uk/publications/our-publications/unlocking-digital-front-door-keys-inclusive-healthcare

Congratulations to Dr. Orlanda Harvey on her latest paper

international, Publishing, writing

This week the journal Performance Enhancement & Health published Orlanda’s latest paper.  This time a Response to a Commentary under the title ‘The case for ‘anabolics’ coaches: selflessness versus self-interest?’ [1].   It is good to see Orlanda making her name in this research field, and the invitation by the journal to write this Response is evidence of this. Dr. Harvey is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Social Sciences & Social Work.

The authors highlight that in the UK AAS (Anabolics Androgenic Steroid) are classified as Class C substances and supplying AAS, including via online from outside the UK, sharing or giving them away free, is unlawful and can lead to a jail sentence. However,Despite being banned in many sports, the use of AAS per se is not illegal and, therefore, health promoters should offer advice, information and support to users as a pragmatic, although not perfect, solution. Since an ‘informal’ structure already exists, health promotion agencies should consider using ‘anabolics coaches’ in their endeavours. If ‘anabolics coaches’ could bring together the prevention-focused medical profession, a harm-minimisation approach, and those from the users’ subculture to develop a platform whereby they can take an inter-disciplinary approach then an opportunity exists to do a lot of good.

References:

  1. Harvey, O., van Teijlingen, E. (2022) The case for ‘anabolics’ coaches: selflessness versus self-interest? Performance Enhancement & Health, 10(3) August, 100230