Sharing Learning

Currently in their extension phase, Butterflies, located in Hull is collaborating with Dr Jason Hayhurst from the University of Hull to explore how behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) can affect the wellbeing of people with dementia (PWD) and their supporters.
One learning that emerged from their first partnership with Dr Emma Wolverson, also from the University of Hull, is that- "One of the unexpected consequences of the work has been how hard staff and volunteers find it to talk about difficult things in dementia even though people with dementia are initiating this conversation… Art and creative expression has been one way to express these difficult topics in a less frightening way and given a freer expression for everyone.”

The VOICE group was initiated by the ambition of an individual who said he wanted to help other people with learning disabilities to live full lives and to have a voice in their community. Over the past year, a small group of people with and without learning disabilities have been meeting to think about how to make that happen and how to grow a real self-advocacy group in Hull, where advocacy services have become compartmentalised and linked to professional structures. In collaboration with a researcher from Hull University the group are considering how they can explore storytelling to connect with each other and increase a sense of community and wellbeing. The group also see it as a way to think about what matters for adults with learning disabilities living in Hull and to demonstrate to people holding power that people with learning disabilities have a voice.

Equal Adventure is a charity based in the Highlands of Scotland whose project was to pilot the delivery of a programme that supported micro community-led nature activities to increase community knowledge of and engagement with inclusive practice in the natural environment.
In the initial phases of their project, they partnered with Ark Housing and the Hebridean Housing Trust (HHP) respectively where they identified and developed new inclusive approaches to meet the needs for people who live in inclusive social housing and community care. The main researcher for both phases of the project is Dr Loel Collins, an independent researcher who specializes in collaborative research with communities and professional communities of practice in adventure and outdoor activities.
Together with their partners, Equal Adventure have produced an educational video to inform the world about the importance of blue and green outdoor spaces in the improvement of mental health and wellbeing of individuals and families with complex disabilities in various housing associations.
“Outdoor Centres and Housing Associations have the potential to act as a resource hub for local action”

OSHI is a peer led project that connects those with relevant lived experience to those living through experiences of addiction and recovery who need immediate help which is not met by an existing system. OSHI also hopes to influence change including on the language, stigma and the value of lived experience. Currently the group use multiple platforms to deliver their support but they would like to explore the option of a digital platform for support. OSHI are collaborating with digital media researcher, who brings learnt experience of technology to co-facilitate the project. The researcher will work in conjunction with the community group to identify key stakeholders for OSHI's work.

The OUT group is a diverse group of 12 people, some who have been in prison, with a collective interest in the prison and criminal justice systems. OUT wants to work with a researcher to support in their journey to become a more established group that has and clear identity and vision, and greater capacity to support others who are also within or outside of the criminal justice system. As a group they have decided that in order to do this they would like to explore and learn more about various topics linked to the justice system, both from an academic and other perspectives. They hope this will break isolation & improve mental wellbeing between people inside & outside prison, and form meaningful relationships that might lead to further collaboration, resource creation and sharing and peer support. The researcher is based at the University of Hull Criminology Department - both partners are viewing the project as knowledge exchange, with the researcher sharing learnt knowledge and current research on crime and the justice system, and group members sharing their lived experience. Together they will co-design sessions throughout the project.

GST's project delivery is centered around providing support for veterans and their families in the rural communities of Garelochhead and the Roseneath Peninsula in Argyll & Bute and have currently expanded their work to West Dunbartonshire , Alexandria and the Vale of Leven.
Currently in their extension phase, GST collaboratively works with some veterans and their family as peer researchers together with two support researchers based in Inverness and Dumfries and Galloway and both work for their respective NHS boards. Their research examines the impact of veterans' engagement with GST on their mental health, individual well-being, and how this has influenced their participation in the broader community.
In their first phase, they worked with Dr Sarah-Anne Munoz who is currently with the National Centre for Remote and Rural Health and Care. In addition to their Ideas fund project, GST offers community activities such as brunches and arts classes for the veteran community.

Youth Aspire Connect's NORM wellbeing project will co-create toolkits and creative outputs to support young people, parents and community leaders destigmatise and normalise conversation about mental health and wellbeing among young people from minoritised backgrounds. The researchers will support the community to identify what and why there are barriers to talking about mental health and wellbeing and to co-create the toolkits.

PAUL for Brain Recovery, for both phases of their Ideas Fund project focuses on improving the mental wellbeing of individuals living with an acquired brain injury (ABI) and their families in Hull. They enabled them to share their stories via creative activities, including storytelling, and arts, via different media - storybooks, pictures, videos. The project has been well received by the Rehabilitation, Neurosurgical and Intensive Care Units in their local hospital. They are currently collaborating with Rehabilitation consultants to submit their research findings to several conferences. Their research partner is Dr Alex Wray from St. John University, York.
They developed an animation with their co-researchers as part of the Ideas Fund Family Support Project. The co-researchers consisted of 13 family members, who had all been affected by acquired brain injury (ABI). As part of the project, they explored the experiences of families living with ABI. The animation was a co-production between the families and the artist. It shines a light on some of the difficulties and challenges families face living with ABI and has the aim of providing hope to other families who are living with ABI, so they know they are not alone. Watch their one of their outputs from their project here.

“We now see research as an essential tool, not just for insight but for co-creating solutions with our community. Moving forward, we’ll use this approach to inform all our activities, ensuring they support the wellbeing of both individuals with ABI and their families in a meaningful, evidence-based way.”

Emotions ARe Not Illness (ERNI) is a group of people who meet virtually, of both mental health service users and practitioners in Hull who are frustrated by the current mental health service systems. They seek to build real-world relationships and co-create resources together with individuals who feel harmed when seeking help and those who work in the ‘caring professions.
They are working with Dr James McLean (University of Hull, Media Production) to create a safe space to share experiences that will lead to greater understanding, solidarity and promote mental health and wellbeing for all the people involved.

Sight Support Hull are working in collaboration with arts organisations that are experienced with working with children, to create a diverse programme of activities. Sight Support is currently in their extension phase and are still committed to extending the impact of their initial project. Their research partners for Project Insight are Dr Bethan Jones and Dr Tricia Shaw and their main work is still centred on improving the mental health of visually impaired children in Hull.

This project is in Kyleakin and works across the wider area of the Isle of Skye & Lochalsh. Recently awarded an extension, Kyleakin continues to provide support and training for individuals from the ages of 19 to 56 years with learning disabilities which include Down’s Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, Autism and Epilepsy to develop communication skills in Makaton. Makaton is a sign and symbol based language system used by individuals with communication challenges.
With this project, Kyleakin is also rebuilding a sensory community garden in their community to promote inclusivity and build connections.
They are now collaborating with Dr Gill Hubbard and Dr Rohan Slaughter, both from the University of Dundee. Since the beginning of their project, they have successfully installed the Makaton till system and trained more than 7 individuals to work with their Makaton tills.
The group shares that- “Without the Ideas Fund we would not be building relationships and working with researchers to develop research processes which are inclusive for adults with learning disabilities.”