People powered research: what do communities identify as important for happy and healthy children and young people? A multi-disciplinary community research priority setting exercise in the City of Bradford, United Kingdom (UK)

International Journal for Equity in Health · 12 authors, 1 centre

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TL;DR

This community-led research priority setting exercise in Bradford, UK, identified that diet/nutrition and exercise are most important for children's physical health, while home life, family relationships, and listening to children are key for happiness. Communities emphasized both individual behaviors and structural factors (e.g., community assets, education) as needing change. The co-produced 27 research questions will guide the Born in Bradford research agenda, demonstrating a replicable model for inclusive priority setting with multi-ethnic populations.

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**Background:** Involving communities in research priority setting can improve research relevance and health outcomes, but such exercises often lack clarity on community involvement and seldom include ethnic minorities. This study, set in the multicultural, deprived city of Bradford, UK, aimed to identify community priorities for keeping children happy and healthy, using a co-produced approach within the Born in Bradford (BiB) research programme. Bradford has a young, multi-ethnic population; a quarter of children live in poverty, and over one third of electoral wards are among the 10% most deprived in England.

**Methods:** A 12-member multi-disciplinary, multi-ethnic community steering group led a modified James Lind Alliance (JLA) approach between December 2018 and March 2020. A paper and online survey asked respondents to list three important things to keep children (i) happy, (ii) healthy, and what needs to change to improve either. Free-text data were coded iteratively by community researchers. Shared priorities were co-produced in workshops with the steering group and community members. The survey was open to anyone living, studying, or working in Bradford District.

**Key Results:** 588 respondents identified 5,748 priorities, coded into 22 themes. For health (Q1: what researchers should find out), diet/nutrition (26%) and exercise (12%) were most common, followed by home life/family relationships (8%), health education (5%), and mental/emotional health (5%). For what needs to change to make children healthier (Q3), diet/nutrition (25%) and exercise (10%) remained top, but community assets rose to third (8%), followed by education/activities (6%) and parent support/input (6%). For happiness (Q2: research focus), home life/family relationships (17%) ranked first, then listening to children (13%), education/activities (10%), mental/emotional health (9%), and social world (9%). For what needs to change for happier children (Q4), community assets and home life/family relationships tied (12% each), followed by education/activities (10%), mental/emotional health (8%), and social world (7%). Respondents were 84% female, 60% White, 30% Asian British/Asian, and 91% lived in Bradford District. From the survey data, the steering group developed 27 research questions covering diet, physical activity, mental health, family relationships, community assets, pollution, education, and social inclusion.

**Clinical Implications:** Communities identified distinct priorities for health (physical factors like diet/exercise) versus happiness (relational and emotional factors like family relationships and being heard). Structural factors (community assets, education) were seen as key levers for change. The co-produced research questions provide a community-informed agenda for BiB, ActEarly, and the NIHR Applied Research Collaboration, ensuring future research addresses locally relevant determinants of child health and wellbeing. The study demonstrates a feasible model for inclusive, power-sharing priority setting with multi-ethnic populations, though the authors note priorities may have shifted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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other

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public_health

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76% · B

ORIGINAL PAPER

PMC10125860

People powered research: what do communities identify as important for happy and healthy children and young people? A multi-disciplinary community research priority setting exercise in the City of Bradford, United Kingdom (UK)

International Journal for Equity in Health

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ABSTRACT

Background Involving communities in research priority setting can increase the relevance and efficiency of research, leading to better health outcomes. However these exercises often lack clarity in how communities are involved and the extent to which priorities are acted upon is unclear. Seldom-heard groups, for example ethnic minorities may experience barriers to participation. We report methods and outcomes of an inclusive co-produced community research priority setting exercise within the multicultural and deprived city of Bradford, UK. The aim was to identify priorities for keeping children happy and healthy and was undertaken by the Born in Bradford (BiB) research programme to inform future research agendas. Methods A 12 member multi-disciplinary, multi-ethnic community steering group led the process using a modified James Lind Alliance approach between December 2018-March 2020. Research priorities were collected through a widely distributed paper and online survey. Respondents were asked to list three important things to keep children i) happy, ii) healthy and what needs to change to improve either health or happiness. Free text data were coded iteratively by community researchers, and shared priorities were co-produced in a series of workshops and meetings with the community steering group and community members. Results Five hundred eighty-eight respondents to the survey identified 5748 priorities, which were coded into 22 themes. These covered a range of individual, social and wider socioeconomic, environmental and cultural priorities. Diet/nutrition and exercise were most commonly identified as important for health, including what needs to change to improve health. For happiness, home life and family relationships, listening to children, and education/activities were the most commonly identified. Community assets were identified as important to change for both health and happiness. From the survey response the steering group developed 27 research questions. There were mapped onto existing and planned research agendas within BiB. Conclusions Communities identified both structural and individual factors as important priorities for health and happiness. We demonstrate how communities can be involved in priority setting using a co-productive approach in the hope this can be used as a model for others. The resulting shared research agenda will shape future research to improve the health of families living in Bradford. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12939-023-01881-y.

CITATION EXPORT

Christopher Cartwright, Aamnah Rahman, Shahid Islam et al.. People powered research: what do communities identify as important for happy and healthy children and young people? A multi-disciplinary community research priority setting exercise in the City of Bradford, United Kingdom (UK). International Journal for Equity in Health. (2023). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12939-023-01881-y

AUTHORS

12 · 1 CENTRES

Christopher Cartwright, Aamnah Rahman, Shahid Islam, Bridget Lockyer, Euroline Roper, Meegan Worcester, Melany Zarate, Rosemary McEachan, Nadera Amini, Ruby Hammard, Peter Horner, Halima Iqbal

grid.418449.40000 0004 0379 5398Born in Bradford, Braford Institute for Health Research, Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Duckworth Lane, Bradford, BD9 6RJ UK