Delivered by Megan Armstrong, the session highlighted common barriers to participation, including accessibility challenges, lack of trust, and rigid research processes. Attendees were introduced to strategies such as working in partnership with communities, adapting recruitment methods, and embedding co-design principles to ensure research is more equitable and relevant.
The masterclass also emphasised the importance of valuing lived experience and moving beyond tokenistic involvement, encouraging researchers to share power and build meaningful relationships with participants.
About the Speaker:
Megan Armstrong is an Associate Professor of Primary Care Research and Deputy Director of the Centre for Ageing Population Studies at UCL. Her work focuses on tackling health inequalities, with a particular emphasis on supporting people experiencing socioeconomic deprivation who live with multiple long-term conditions (MLTCs). She leads NIHR-funded research co-designing and evaluating a digital self-management toolkit developed in partnership with people from underserved communities. Her wider research examines how deprivation shapes self-management, access to primary care, and the feasibility of digital health interventions in real-world settings. She also co-investigates work addressing frailty among people experiencing homelessness. Coming from a working-class background, Megan brings lived experience to her research, ensuring that people who are most often excluded from research play a central role in shaping solutions that aim to improve care, inclusion, and equality.
Catch up:
You can find more masterclass videos and additional supporting content on the SPCR YouTube Channel.