Cornwall Health Determinants Research Collaboration

Background Cornwall Council are committed to addressing health inequalities and making Cornwall a place to start well, live well, and age well. Rural, coastal and peripheral characteristics are not unique to Cornwall but pose a challenge to equitable and effective service delivery. An HDRC will build from collective experience to better understand the causes and consequences of health inequalities that matter most to people in Cornwall. Aims and Objectives To build and embed research culture, capacity and capability to develop effective evidence-led solutions to the causes and consequences of health determinants and inequalities that matter most to people in Cornwall. - Inform practice and decision making by building and embedding research culture and capacity across the council and its partners. - Develop a research collaboration that combines skills, knowledge and expertise from academic, community, and local authority partners to address and drive improvement of determinants of health. - Generate robust, translatable, research outputs that inform practice and decision-making in Cornwall and beyond. Collaborations/Partnerships Cornwall HDRC will grow from strong, strategic partnerships across local authority, academia, VCSE and Cornish residents. It will facilitate a process of shared and multifaceted learning as each partner adds and gains value from the collaboration. Cornwall Council (CC) will bring expertise in population health and opportunities for impact through service delivery and decision making. CC will gain a research-active workforce and ability to shape and drive research activity. Three Universities of Exeter, Falmouth and Plymouth will bring expertise in key research topics, theory and methodologies and will gain understanding of the issues facing Council officers, helping to align research questions with their needs. Cornwall’s VCSE will bring in-depth knowledge of and connections with local communities and will gain skills for effecting innovative methods for evidencing impact. Communities will bring essential expertise borne of experience and will gain skills, experience and genuine influence on research priorities. Timeline and Milestones for delivery Year 1 – Strong from the Start - Recruitment of core research team - Co-creation of the Citizen Research Group - Setting of shared culture and priorities Years 2-3 - Building Core Capacity - Delivery of first three shared learning opportunities - Fit for purpose local authority research infrastructure - Learning shared at national research conference - Active learning through HDRC evaluation activity Years 3-4 - Consolidate and Grow - Collaborative projects - Submission of joint-funding applications - Evidence of research-informed decision making and commissioning - Co-authored publications Years 4-5 - Moving Forward - Recruitment of a Sustainability Programme Lead - Successful acquisition of further funding - Evidence of change in the impact of health determinants in Cornwall Anticipated Impact and Dissemination Impact will be evidenced by a culture shift within the Council; a deeper and more detailed knowledge of health determinants and their place-based context; an active and empowered Citizen Research Group with evidenced contribution to HDRC activity; and a step-change in collaborative capacity to attract, deliver, and translate into practice, research activity addressing health inequalities.