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After my first week of switching over from participation to research I now understand more the frustration that people have about co-production in research.
Previously within my role co-production was fairly easy to put into place but research grants make that harder.
Previously within my role co-production was fairly easy to put into place but research grants make that harder.
The first issue is the language, are you aiming for authentic co-production, PPI, engagement, collaboration or involvement? They're all different and mean different things right from the point of idea generation and grant application.
The second issue, once you've grappled what 'non-academic involvement' looks like is convincing a funder that your method of working with community experts and academic experts has the same weight as just academics, which is a 'tried and tested this will work low risk' option.
The third issue is just how convoluted and often short (both on time and space) you have to convince a funder that your project with rather than for or about people is worth funding.
The fourth issue is that co-production and every approach like it is seen as an add-on to research rather than the holistic approach it actually is, you can't just add a bit of co-production onto a project, it has to be embedded.
The fifth issue is that measurements of impact like the REF don't favour co-production as copro can take that bit longer to do. It can be difficult to ask a researcher to devote time they might not have to use an approach that might be viewed quantitively as lesser.
You're then left with a public that wants to be involved in projects about them, researchers interested in this way of working, university systems that are overly bureaucratic and a funding system catching up to this way of working, which means it doesn't always work.
What I really want is there to be more transparent about what we're actually doing in research whether it be co-production or something else along the sliding scale of involvement.
I'd also like the public to be involved in grant applications both on the side of applying and reviewing.
We operate within systems and institutions and if they aren't working then they need to change.
We operate within systems and institutions and if they aren't working then they need to change.
