The Brighton Citizen's Health Services Survey (BCHSS) was developed to explore and potentially challenge how knowledge is used and by whom in the production of local health commissioning institutions and relations. Through the creation of an 'animating set of questions', it sought to open up spaces through which to make visible some of the ways of knowing and valuing the NHS and health services that had been minimised through the commensuration practices of post-2012 public engagement. In this way there was a clear agenda to facilitate a form of knowledge democratisation which opened up and validated different 'health publics', in order to explore and broaden participative engagement opportunities. The paper provides an account of the project. It considers the theoretical and methodological underpinnings of this example of 'evidence-based activism', reflects on the impact of the project on local commissioning and considers the range of controversies that arose as a result of the work. It explores the way that research straddling the boundary between academic inquiry and political activism speaks to the many issues that are prevalent in the changing HE sector as well as NHS privatisation, health commissioning and public sector cuts.

No abstract

The Brighton Citizens Health Services Survey was an academic activism project to identify and understand citizens' perceptions of and responses to healthcare commissioning practices. Significant legislated changes to the National

No abstract

No abstract

Trans women face multiple social, economic and health inequalities and the impact of gender oppression and violence is even more profoundly experienced by trans women sex workers, although in culturally specific ways. This paper presents a pilot study conducted to explore and engage with the context of trans women sex workers in Lido Tre Archi, Italy. In line with the community psychology values of social justice, social change and participation, we outline our engagement process and key challenges observed when attempting action research with such a highly marginalised group. Data were collected in the form of ethnographic notes from informal consultations with different stakeholders and participant observations, and of documents (newspaper articles, picture captions) and were analysed using thematic analysis. Findings are organised in three themes relating to the social, policy and physical context in Lido Tre Archi demonstrating evidence of the contextual challenges and how they intertwine to generate a spiral of marginalisation and social exclusion for the participants. We take a collaborative and reflexive stance in our work and conclude with recommended steps and potential limitations to initiate an action research project.

No abstract

No abstract