Save the date for the next Public Engagement and Involvement Forum

Following the success of the first Health and Care Research Wales Public Engagement and Involvement Forum, the second event will be held over two sessions on 4 and 11 November 2021 on Zoom.

Nearly 100 people attended the first Forum across two days in May 2021.

The Forum is a network for researchers, the public and other people working in Welsh research to discuss issues and drive improvement in public involvement and engagement. 

The first Forum featured a range of speakers who explored how the public can be involved in the prioritisation of Welsh research and what steps could be taken to make research more inclusive.

Reshma Raycoba, Acting Head of Public Involvement at Welsh Government, who chairs the Forum, said: “It was fantastic to see so many people take part in our first Public Engagement and Involvement Forum. The Forum will support good practice and promote the impact of public involvement across health and social care research through Wales-wide collaboration.”

Through a survey, people working in health and care research and the public were asked what they wanted to be prioritised over the next year. The results were presented at the Forum in May. 

Reshma continued: “Many responses showed the most important thing to the community right now is that we take actions to make sure public engagement and involvement is promoted and supported at the highest levels across government, the NHS and within Health and Care Research Wales. We hear that feedback and this will be the priority for our sessions in November.”

The Discover Your Role in Health and Social Care Research Action Plan, published in 2020, sets out actions to take across seven focus areas to improve public engagement and involvement.

In response to the feedback from this survey, the next Forum will explore Focus Area 2 of the Action Plan, which explores ways to ensure senior level support for public involvement and engagement. 

There will be a range of speakers who will explore this topic in detail over the two Forum sessions, as well as updates from the two active working groups who are focusing on the new public engagement strategy and on tackling administrative barriers to public involvement.

Please contact the Public Involvement team by email if you would like to be added to the Forum mailing list and be the first to know when the programme is announced and registration opens.

If you missed out on the first event, you can view the presentations from the May Public Engagement and Involvement Forum.