The NIHR School for Public Health Research (SPHR) and People’s Health Trust are collaborating together on a new pilot scheme that aims to evaluate voluntary sector initiatives which are developed and delivered by communities. The results of the evaluation will help to identify voluntary sector initiatives that have the potential to improve public health and could be replicated in other areas.
People’s Health Trust’s current fund, the Health Justice Fund provides a route for communities experiencing the sharp end of health inequalities to use their experience and practice to improve health for the long term. The emerging priority areas the Trust and SPHR researchers are focusing upon are discrimination and health and jobs, young people and health.
Established in 2012, the NIHR SPHR is a partnership between nine leading academic centres with excellence in applied public health research. The School aims to increase the evidence base for inclusive, equitable and cost-effective public health practice. The School works in partnership with policy and practice colleagues to deliver research that informs and shapes policies to improve the health of the population and planet.
In this pilot scheme called the Voluntary Sector Evaluation Scheme (VoySES), the SPHR and People’s Health Trust will work together to produce high-quality and useful research evidence to address the needs of communities most affected by the issues. This will help inform evidence-based decisions on what works within these communities.
The evidence that emerges from these partnerships will provide important insight for the sector on what works to reduce health inequalities and stop people dying too young.
John Hume
Chief Executive, People's Health Trust
This scheme follows the success of the SPHR Public Health Practice Evaluation Scheme (PHPES) and the desire to replicate this with other key stakeholder groups, including the voluntary sector. PHPES helped address challenges faced by public health practitioners working on the ‘front line’ with a focus on local public health initiatives. It produced evidence for public health practice to improve population health and reduce health inequalities. This new scheme aims to do the same for the voluntary sector.
John Hume, Chief Executive, People’s Health Trust said:
“This is an exciting opportunity for People's Health Trust to partner with world-leading health researchers through the VoySES pilot to both develop and evaluate parts of our Health Justice Fund.
The two areas we are working in partnership on: discrimination and its impact on health as and ways we can support young people to have better access to jobs and apprenticeships are both critical to the health inequalities picture, and the evidence that emerges from these partnerships will provide important insight for the sector on what works to reduce health inequalities and stop people dying too young.”
Director of the NIHR School for Public Health Research, Professor Ashley Adamson, said:
“We are delighted to be working in partnership with People’s Health Trust. This innovative partnership will allow the strengths of both the School for Public Health Research and People’s Health Trust to be utilised to ensure that applied public health research evidence is put in the hands of those who can use it within the voluntary sector.
This partnership helps to cement a commitment we have made as a School to support and work alongside our colleagues within the Voluntary, Community, Faith and Social Enterprise sector. We very much look forward to the pioneering work this partnership will enable.”