Coventry Peace House Co-Production
Supporting a charity in securing a grant, training volunteers in research, and providing a report with recommendations to make their local services more inclusive
One of our founding principles is to reduce health inequalities by empowering people to be heard in research and decision-making. This year, for the first time, we reached out to a charity we had existing links with and explored how we could support them in conducting their own research. We know how to write successful grants and conduct robust research to inform service recommendations. Coventry Peace House knows their client group inside-out, particularly low-income, middle-aged to older men, and their challenges living with chronic health and disability. We were delighted to use our skills to help them to use theirs to create a meaningful piece of research with local impact.
The Coventry Peace House resonated with us due to their work addressing inequality through enjoyable community activities that bring people together and foster skills and wellbeing. They asked us for support applying for a Healthwatch grant, which we provided pro-bono. Healthwatch, the public’s champion for health and social care, was providing grant funding for projects aimed at understanding experiences with and barriers to using local NHS and social care services.
One of the groups which use the Peace House’s services are mid-life to older men from low socio-economic backgrounds. Peace House volunteers were concerned that this group were experiencing increasing chronic health difficulties and disability yet are more likely to have difficulties accessing support due to lack of awareness or understanding of health and healthcare, stigma, social isolation, and low digital literacy.
We trained the Peace House staff to design and conduct the research – interviews, focus groups and use of arts-based participatory methods with a group of 21 local men – to gain deeper insights into men’s health experiences and service engagement. Staff worked closely with local communities, including the local library and Men’s Sheds, to recruit participants and conduct research in a way that made those new to research feel safe and comfortable.
Guiding staff and volunteers how to analyse and interpret research findings was really interesting to get fresh eyes on something we do regularly. As those conducting the research were also living and working in the same community as the participants, they were able to understand more than a traditional academic researcher could. As we talked through the recommendations the central thread was clear: the need for a greater safety net around men in this group. This could involve men’s groups holding lives together with information, support, and friendship; trusted professionals reminding and encouraging men to book appointments; or simply more NHS reminders to attend appointments and screenings. Healthwatch Coventry now has the report and will use its statutory role to ensure that the findings reach those who run and plan local health and care services.
“Insightful and extremely efficient, the Kohlrabi team steered our men's healthcare project, highlighting the value of our findings and focusing our lines of enquiry so that we could produce the best piece of work ourselves."
Coventry Peace House