Research Cafés: co-producing inclusive health research with diverse communities in Integrated Care Systems

Working as part of a partnership – the Southwest London Health Research Collaborative - the research team aims to build local, diverse participation in the design and delivery of health and care research in southwest London, initially in mental health. 

They aim to do this through piloting ‘research cafés’, informal spaces where diverse communities can talk about their experiences of health and care.

Pictured below: Research Cafe session in Kingston in collaboration with Mind in Kingston's Magpie Project. 

What is the health problem?

People from Black, Asian and minority ethnic groups in the UK experience stark inequalities within the mental healthcare system. They are: 

• More likely to be diagnosed with a severe mental illness (Halvorsrud et al 2019)
• Over four times more likely to be detained under the Mental Health Act than White people
• Over eleven times more likely to be subject to a Community Treatment Order (NHS Digital (2022)), under which patients can be recalled to hospital if they refuse treatment 

People from Black, Asian and minority ethnic groups are also less likely to access mental health services and are underrepresented within mental health research. 

Dr Josephine Ocloo, senior researcher on the project at King’s College London, says: “People from Black and Asian backgrounds are less likely to be invited to get involved with health research – both clinical and qualitative – but are more likely to have a worse experience of healthcare and to be disproportionately affected by health inequalities. That ultimately impacts on the services we provide”.

How the research project will work

This research project will:

1. Pilot four research cafe sessions in Croydon, Wandsworth, Kingston and Sutton, as a proof-of-concept study in the context of mental health as a mechanism to increase the diversity and inclusivity of participation and involvement in research.
2. Use a mixed-methods framework, integrating both qualitative and quantitative methodologies to assess the effectiveness and impact of four research café events. 
3. Draw upon the evidence from the study to examine the best way to set up a Southwest London Research Support Network and supportive peer research resources, as a step towards improving healthcare experiences through more inclusive research involvement and participation.

Our collaborators 

The partnership is led by the Southwest London Integrated Care Board. It includes Southwest London's academic institutions, acute and community NHS trusts, NIHR ARC South London, Clinical Research Network South London, Health Innovation Network as well as colleagues from the South London Partnership and local voluntary sector organisations through the South West London Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) Alliance.

The study will use a community peer research approach, working collaboratively with four voluntary sector organisations - Centre of Change in Croydon, Tooting Community Kitchen in Wandsworth, MIND's Magpie Café in Kingston, and People Arise Now in Sutton - to organise the community research café sessions.

Setting up the South West London Research Support Network

The first phase of this project ended in April 2024. Our evaluation of four research cafes highlighted that there was high satisfaction with the inclusivity and experience, enhanced understanding of research and a strong interest in being involved in research. 

As a result, in May 2024 we launched the South West London Research Support Network to help build awareness of and expand opportunities to take part in research. We have received additional funding from the NHS Research Engagement Network programme to continue to grow and support community and peer researchers within the network. 

We expect to publish our findings around use of research cafes as a methodology to improve inclusion and diversity in research.

Find out more 

• New research cafes support community conversations for better health - South West London ICS 
• Research cafés: a new way to co-produce inclusive research and engage with diverse communities in southwest London

Pictured below: Research Cafe in Croydon with Centre of Change.