EPSRC - Communities and Cultures Network+ Impact Review June 2014 Saskia Gent Christina Miariti Contents Introduction ..................................................................................................................................................................................................... 3 The CCN+ Network ................................................................................................................................................................................. 3 The impact review: our approach ........................................................................................................................................................ 3 Definition of Impact ................................................................................................................................................................................ 3 Pathways to Impact and overall impact ...................................................................................................................................................... 4 Impact analysis ................................................................................................................................................................................................ 5 Recommendations ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 7 APPENDICES ..................................................................................................................................................................................................... 9 Appendix 1: Impact review - project analysis table .................................................................................................................................. 9 Appendix 2: Pathways to Impact ............................................................................................................................................................... 25 2 Introduction The CCN+ Network The Communities and Cultures Network+ is a network funded by the EPSRC that responds to the key EPSRC challenge ‘Digital Economy’. This challenge aims to reveal how communities, participation and culture are changing in the digital age. The Network explores digital transformations, bringing them together with a wider public through direct engagements, innovative methods and digital resources. It facilitates research, knowledge exchange and innovative connections through a variety of studies and projects and also by engaging with different stakeholders with interests and expertise in this domain. The impact review: our approach Following the launch of a number of scoping studies, seed projects, pilot projects, and events, the Network is currently in its second year. The need has emerged to take stock of the current activity and examine beneficial outcomes for the non- academic community, as well as to take a closer look at future routes to impact as means of maximising impact and of informing the future work of the Network. The aim, therefore, of this impact review, is to demonstrate the ways through which the Network is realising its aim to realise the potential of digital transformation for culture and communities, in a series of contexts by understanding the positive changes that are achieved by engaging with non-academic actors. The review took place between January-June 2014. Our method was to consult, collect data, review, follow-up and report. Following a first meeting with CNN+ leaders to scope out the review and collect the documentation, we reviewed a total of 24 projects funded by the Network by examining three main types of documents (as available per project): the initial proposal to the Network, the list of outputs produced and any interim or final reports. In reviewing the documents, we analysed the levels and type of engagement with non-academic beneficiaries by project; we noted not only the impact that had been achieved but also the potential for further impact through sustained interactions. After sharing first findings in a second meeting with the CNN+ project managers and to ensure we obtained a full picture of the outcomes, we involved users in supplying further information via a list of questions for the grant recipients for direct follow-up. We faced some difficulties in making sense of how the projects related to each other. This means we did not look specifically at how some scoping studies led on to more substantive projects – as a result the effects of some of these initial projects may be underplayed in our report. This report describes impact as recorded in initial documents and as formulated and achieved through project activities (clarified to us through the set of questions). It begins by carving out what was promised at the proposal stage through the Pathways to Impact statement, describing the impacts achieved per project and concluding with a set of recommendations for the next phase of the Network. Definition of Impact In carrying out this review we defined impact as ‘the beneficial effects stemming from the Network’s activity for non- academic actors’ with whom the Network engaged. The external definitions we based this on were: The Research Council’s definition of impact: “The demonstrable contribution that excellent research makes to society and the economy. Research impact embraces all the diverse ways that research-related skills benefit individuals, organisations and nations. These include: fostering global economic performance, and specifically the economic competitiveness of the United Kingdom increasing the effectiveness of public services and policy enhancing quality of life, health and creative output.” 3 The ESRC typology of impact1 of the social sciences: Instrumental: influencing the development of policy, practice or service provision, shaping legislation, altering behaviour Conceptual: contributing to the understanding of policy issues, reframing debates Capacity building: through technical and personal skill development. We also applied our knowledge and experience of interpreting impact against the HEFCE REF definition of impact as ‘An effect on, change or benefit to the economy, society, culture, public policy or services, health, the environment or quality of life, beyond academia.’ Pathways to Impact and overall impact Despite the recency of the CCN+ award and the fact that a number of the projects considered in this review were scoping or seed projects, the CCN+ network has resulted in wide ranging impacts in a number of different contexts. Our analysis suggests that this has been brought about by several key factors. Many of the projects were participatory in nature, involving groups of participants in activities key to the research process. Similarly action research featured as a methodology or co-design of projects took place, involving beneficiaries or research users from the outset. A few of the projects specifically designed impact objectives or processes including Reaching out online (actionable outputs), Everyday growing cultures (impact indicators) and Social media and Austerity: Online Peer Support in Mental health communities (creation of service user panel) which have resulted in, or are likely to result in, beneficial outcomes. A key feature of CCN+ ‘s impact strategy was that impact was embedded into the research and would result both from project activity and from the network as a whole. The majority of projects that the Network has funded have involved non- academic actors in project activity, in a way that ensures that the engagement and ensuing discussions around digital transformations feed back to the wider Network. The Network envisaged impact on policy, the creative and cultural industries, the wider public and communities as well as through media and education. The impact strategy was designed with equal emphasis on the production of targeted outputs and the engagement of users in the activities. This not only directly informed the issues in question, but also increased routes for the dissemination of traditional and digital outputs, through the range of contacts developed. According to the proposal, impact materialises through a series of distinctive but connected projects and events that are consolidated in annual workshops and which add to the broader understanding of the ‘Digital economy’ as it emerges. The Network has gone a long way to be true to its promise: it has demonstrated high levels of engagement, involving a great number of external users ranging from local councils and schools to community groups, NGOs and the media, diffusing the knowledge gradually built by the projects at national and international level via respective links and collaborations with other networks (e.g. the Nordic Network for Digital Visuality). To a great extent, the impactful outcomes are owed to the participatory methods that have been used in carrying out the research. It is in this way that stories have been brought to life, relationships have been established with key users who have provided their insights and changes occurred as the projects unrolled, allowing the users to be co-producers of knowledge rather than be involved solely as information providers or recipients. Collaborating with the users directly rather than working on or for them has resulted in relationships that have sparked discussions for further proposals and future projects (e.g. ‘Public