Community360’s Development Manager, Matt Mason, recently presented findings from our Macmillan Community Voices Project at the Voluntary Sector and Volunteering Research Conference, contributing to national discussions on health inequalities and cancer care.
The conference brought together researchers, practitioners and voluntary sector organisations from across the UK to share learning and explore some of the most pressing issues facing the VCSE sector. Matt attended as part of the conference’s New Researchers Day and presented From Practice to Knowledge: Reflections on Health Inequalities from the Macmillan Community Voices Project.
The presentation highlighted how intersecting health inequalities can affect cancer care journeys, with barriers often shaped by a combination of factors including (but not limited to) ethnicity, language, socioeconomic circumstances, geography, age and cultural experiences across six cohorts. Our Partnership with Macmillan Cancer Support allows us to use our Participatory Action Research approach to co-construct people’s experiences of cancer, allowing us to effectively communicate challenges in care journeys to decision makers and partners across the health system.
Research from the project identified a range of structural, cultural and bureaucratic barriers that can influence people’s access to care and support. The findings demonstrate the importance of designing services around individual experiences and ensuring that those most affected by health inequalities have a voice in shaping future provision.
Reflecting on the conference, Matt said:
“It was a very rewarding and stimulating experience to attend the VSVR conference, showcasing Community360’s Macmillan Community Voices Project. Across the conference, the breadth and quality of the work was inspiring to see, with practitioners and researchers coming together to tackle the big issues facing the VCSE sector, sharing knowledge from far-reaching places in the UK.
As part of the New Researchers Day, connecting with early career researchers and key members of the Voluntary Sector Studies Network provided an important touch point to discuss some key learnings around the co-constructing of intersectional health inequalities for Community360, further expanding the reach of our project.”
The event provided an excellent opportunity to showcase the impact of the Macmillan Community Voices Project, build new connections and contribute to wider conversations about reducing health inequalities and improving outcomes for people affected by cancer. Community360 is proud to see the project’s learning helping to inform research and practice on a national stage.
If you would like to know more about any of our project work, please email voices@community360.org.uk
