Did you know that the average household throws away £60 worth of food every month? Or that recycling one banana peel can generate enough energy to charge two mobile phones? Food waste is a big problem for the planet, for Essex, and for our residents. To help inform a county-wide campaign, we set out to explore behaviours around food waste using an online research community approach.
Essex County Council, in collaboration with health partners, has a duty to undertake an assessment of the current and future health and wellbeing needs of the county’s communities on a regular basis. This process is referred to as the Joint …
We commissioned Revealing Reality to conduct a research project during the summer of 2021 to explore the needs, motivations, and barriers to successful employment for people with learning disabilities and autism in Essex.
Recently we completed a research project with survivors of domestic abuse, and wanted to share a bit about how we did it and why it was so important to us that this research has an impact. We engaged with survivors of domestic abuse over a period of several months, to explore how they want to share their views, provide feedback and be involved in decision-making, in a way that is best for them.
This week our team visited a high school in Essex to talk to sixth formers about their experiences of Covid-19 in terms of the impact to their mental health, relationships, education and future opportunities. Updated guidance meant that all pupils were now expected to wear face masks in classrooms, so this went for us researchers too...
Through research with employees we found that there are many working parents within ECC who are feeling the pressures of juggling work and home life, and would benefit from some extra support. Our insights informed the development of a group coaching pilot. Evaluating well was key, and we were keen to learn as we go.
In September 2020 we started on our journey to explore families' views of the current Short Breaks service. Our brief was to see how current services were meeting the needs of children with disabilities, and what services might look like in the future.
When I heard that the government had pulled the plug on unconscious bias training, I remember thinking that it felt like a backwards step. But a review found limited evidence that it creates behaviour change, and could even lead to "unintended negative consequences.” So, what was going on there that meant not only was it not very effective, but could actually be making things worse?
Any project in a local authority setting has a certain degree of bureaucracy. And that’s good, bureaucracy makes sure people are kept in the loop, makes sure services are fit for purpose, makes sure we are accountable and transparent. But bureaucracy can also make our workdays too long, frustrate us and distract us from our, and the organisation’s, motivation.
I would have been studying hard for upcoming deadlines at The University of Essex, revising for modules like Econometrics and Mathematical Methods. However, I decided early on in my degree that I needed to gain experience, and the best way was through an industrial placement.