Debate about AI and its implications for individuals, organisations and society as a whole seems to be everywhere at the moment. Research is no different, and there is active debate about the opportunities and risks of AI for research. Here we share our current thinking and our approach to using AI in our work…
Read More‘Vulnerability’ is a complex and ever-changing concept, and research with people in vulnerable circumstances is not straight-forward. At Community Research we offer considerable experience in research with people in vulnerable circumstances, and here we share our perspective on the role of research and insight in helping you understand vulnerability.
Read MoreHere we share our experience of setting up and running qualitative panels where engaged and informed members of the public have an ongoing relationship with our clients to help inform complex policy and decision-making.
Read MoreWe’ve helped some of the UK's leading regulators and consumer protection bodies grapple with some highly complex policy issues. We’ve relished the challenge of bringing public, stakeholder and professional voices into our clients’ decision-making processes. Read more about how our work has supported clients…
Read MoreWe believe that communities have a right to have a say in the decisions that affect their lives and that they can be enabled to do so, even where decisions are complex or technical or involve difficult trade-offs. Read more about how we approach this…
Read MoreAs the GMC embarked on a new expanded role as a multi-profession regulator, it asked Community Research to run a year-long panel of registrants and the public. The panel was designed along co-production principles to ensure these key stakeholders were able to influence fast-moving policy thinking with regards to regulatory reform.
Read MoreIn 2025, we helped two regulators enable the public to have a meaningful say on their organisational strategies. The public often has a low understanding of professional regulation, so we designed an approach that built their understanding and enabled them to have an informed opinion on what matters to the public in the future of dentistry and barristers…
Read MoreRead about how we designed a multi-phased deliberative panel to enable consumers to have a say on how Targeted Support might be designed and delivered to reduce the overwhelm and help pensions savers feel in control of critical life decisions…
Read MoreWhat can counselling training bring to our work in research? Here one of our researchers - who has been training as a counsellor over the past four years - shares her reflections…
Read MoreMany of our clients are considering the regulatory implications AI. This includes the GMC, who asked us to speak to doctors about their experiences of using AI in their practice, and to consider the opportunities and risks that the GMC needs to manage.
Read MoreAt the PSA’s 2024 conference we presented with the GMC, sharing our plans for research into the thresholds of public confidence for Fitness to Practice cases. Here we talk more about the forthcoming research, and how it sits in the wider work that healthcare regulators are doing to incorporate the public’s views on the boundaries of professional conduct…
Read MoreIf you come from a minoritised ethnic background or neither of your parents has a degree, you have less chance of securing a pupillage - the final stage prospective barristers go through prior to qualification. We researched how pupillage providers are seeking to redress this balance…
Read More92% of adults in the UK seek out local news and information. However, the local media landscape is rapidly changing, and Ofcom is reviewing the provision, role and value of local media in the UK. We carried out an extensive piece of qualitative research involving over 130 people across the four nations, exploring the role of local media in their lives and their hopes and concerns for its future…
Read MoreHave you noticed an increase in the price of your broadband or mobile phone contract? Did you read the small print when you took out the contract? If you didn’t, our research for Ofcom about in-contract price rises research suggests that you are not alone…
Read MoreOur research with people who can’t receive their post provided rich insight into how post exclusion is exacerbating the difficulties people are facing due to rises in living costs. Their stories are central to Citizen Advice’s campaign for change…
Read MoreIn November 2023, we presented our research on the Duty of Candour in chiropractic and osteopathy services. The research brought considered views from patients into the debate on how we can make care safer for all…
Read MoreFollowing on from our previous blog about research amongst Thames Water’s vulnerable customers, here we focus on how we delivered research where three quarters of participants came from minoritised ethnic groups. Read about how we shaped the sample through careful analysis of Thames Water’s customer base and how we worked with Ethnic Opinions to reach the right people and enable them to share their stories…
Read MoreWhen Thames Water commissioned us to conduct an ambitious study on vulnerability amongst their customers, we pressed the pause button. Instead of diving straight into the design and recruitment, we took time to interrogate what vulnerability means in this context, who in their catchment area might be vulnerable, and what we needed to ask people to understand what makes them vulnerable. This preliminary analysis involved reviewing existing data and evidence to shape the research, and it had a material impact on the resultant design.
Read MoreA desktop review of international comms campaigns that aim to change consumer behaviour - what can we learn? The Consumer Council for Water asked Community Research to conduct a wide-ranging review to synthesise lessons to help galvanise action and foster collaborative working in the sector. Here’s what we did…
Read MoreOur recent in-depth research provided the Legal Services Board with a granular understanding of how people can be vulnerable when they have a legal issue. The research shows how this can affect their ability to engage with (and feel agency) over matters that have a significant impact on their lives. It also shows the material impact that legal professionals have on increasing or decreasing people’s vulnerability. We used case studies and storyboards to bring these stories to life…
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