About REN

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Background

We are working with representatives from across the voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) sector, academics, researchers and health leaders, as well as communities from across the North East and North Cumbria, to help establish a health and wellbeing research network to promote and grow diverse community participation and involvement in research

Aims

Facilitating Collaboration: REN aims to bring together various stakeholders, including academic institutions, healthcare providers, community organisations, and the public, to foster collaborative research efforts.
Promoting Research Participation: It works to increase the involvement of patients, healthcare professionals, and the broader community in research activities, ensuring that research is more inclusive and representative of the diverse population in these regions.
Enhancing Research Impact: By engaging with a wide range of stakeholders, REN seeks to ensure that research findings are effectively translated into practice, leading to tangible improvements in healthcare outcomes and services.
Building Capacity: REN supports the development of research skills and capacity among healthcare professionals and researchers, providing training, resources, and networking opportunities.
Advocating for Research: It advocates for the importance of research within the healthcare system and among the public, highlighting the benefits of evidence-based practice and innovation.

The Research Engagement Network (REN) programme has supported and increased research readiness and engagement with communities at a local level by:

supporting sustainable research engagement with communities across the integrated care systems geography who are typically underserved by research
working with researchers and communities to increase inclusivity and opportunities for diverse communities to take part in research
embedding approaches to diverse research inclusion across the integrated care system and in the way the REN partners operate, specifically in relation to how the programme supports the Integrated Care Board to deliver against the locally held research strategy and its legal duties to facilitate research

REN principles

Our ten guiding principles as detailed in our Community Engagement Toolkit are:

Do the ground work and prepare
Find trusted community workers /leaders who can help broker introductions with wider communities
Respect the vast knowledge and experience of communities
Be honest about the scope and resources and don't over promise. Agree ways of working and core values
Be flexible about where and when you arrange meetings
Be generous, build in impact and consider ways to give back beyond your specific project needs
Invest time; genuine relationships take commitment and time to develop trust
Be creative and innovative using different ways of working
Listen attentively and engage fully with the needs and priorities the community share
Be responsive, communicate regularly, feedback any outcomes, and say thank you

Read more about these principles in our Community Engagement Toolkit.