Involving people in research

Our vision is of a society in which research is created, used, challenged, valued and shared by all. Find out more about our vision (PDF, 2.8MB).

Many researchers and innovators are already involved in public engagement through activities such as science festivals, mentoring STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) projects, outreach work, and involving the public in their research to improve understanding.

Involving people in your research

Examples of reasons for engaging the public include:

inspiring young people to consider a career in research
learning to understand a problem from the public’s perspective
hearing from a local community about the issues they want addressed.

You can design many activities to deliver good public engagement, such as:

a simple public talk where you present research findings
an in-depth dialogue with facilitated discussion
a citizen science project where members of the public are involved as contributors or collaborators
co-created exhibition content in a museum or gallery
co-designed research where members of a group help develop the activity.

Find out more about our support for public engagement.

You can also find out more about:

You can find guidance and resources on how to design and plan your activities from the National Co-Ordinating Centre for Public Engagement. The centre is funded by UKRI, Wellcome and other organisations. It inspires and supports universities to increase the quality and impact of their activity. It has lots of useful resources, including:

Find funding opportunities

Search the Funding finder for opportunities supporting public engagement.

Last updated: 28 October 2020