Multisectoral Collaboratives, Community Connectedness and Health Inequalities

Organised by the Department of Population Health Sciences, dozens of community figures who work with youths, families, and under-represented communities from Lambeth, Bradford and Kent met up with researchers and public health officials to highlight health inequalities in the community and figure out practical ways alleviate these. 

The goal of the day was to brainstorm practical steps to move towards a Multisectoral Collaborative, which describes a group formed to promote inclusion, diversity and equity in research to work towards health equity. Participants were invited to develop this concept and identify specific ways they could work together to create something realistic, sustainable and mutually beneficial.

The day took on a ‘World Café’ structure, which is a widely used research method that sparks collaborative conversations and collective intelligence on a topic. A live scribe was present throughout the day, creating illustrations based on the conversations that were taking to engage audiences and drive change through visual storytelling.

Participants from initiatives such as Lambeth HEART, Citizen Science and Faith in Communities were tasked with answering three prompts for the morning discussion. These included: ‘What are the actionable priorities for a UK-wide multisectoral collaborative?’; ‘Who should be part of such a collaborative and why?’; and ‘How can community voices be embedded in this collaborative?’

Some of the areas highlighted by participants in response to these prompts included the importance of building trust between researchers, community organisations and community members.

Communication was also emphasised, with sensitivity around language barriers and the importance of using clear and accessible communication to ensure a two-way dialogue. Capacity building was also highlighted, with importance placed on training community members in research skills and data use to influence decision making for funding.