Funders recently responded to work led by Dr Lorenzo Stafford CPsychol, Associate Professor in Psychobiological Psychology at the University of Portsmouth (UoP), on alcohol desire and memory. Their feedback reflected a message that funders are increasingly clear that for many funding streams, strong science alone is not enough. Research proposals must also demonstrate early community engagement, responsible research practices, and clear potential for social and economic impact.
For Lorenzo’s team, that engagement did not begin once the bid was written. Instead, it was embedded earlier through support from the Health Determinants Research Collaboration (HDRC) Portsmouth team, helping to shape the project from the ground upwards.
HDRC Portsmouth is a partnership between Portsmouth City Council, the University of Portsmouth and HIVE Portsmouth. The programme exists to embed research within local decision‑making and to reduce health inequalities across the city. HDRC supports research that addresses the wider determinants of health and influences real‑world policy and practice.
A core part of this offer is research facilitation. HDRC works alongside academics at an early stage to support co‑production, stakeholder engagement and connections into the local authority, where change can happen. This is not about adding another layer to a project; it is about ensuring the right people are involved, the right questions are being asked, and the research is designed in a way that meets the needs of commissioners, communities, and funders alike.
In Lorenzo’s case, this facilitation role unlocked both capacity and perspective. Dr Sam Belfrage, Research Facilitation Lead at HDRC Portsmouth, supported the team by drawing on established relationships with local authority wellbeing teams and commissioners, helping to convene a widely constituted advisory group. This process brought together voices, including veterans, that had not originally been considered. Engagement with these stakeholders led to tangible changes to the research question, strengthened the rationale for the work, and ensured that those experiencing the greatest health inequalities could help shape the proposed intervention.
Importantly, Sam was a core member of the team, bringing a local authority lens, including insight into commissioning realities and resource considerations, into the application.
This approach emerged as a clear strength through the feedback. Reviewer themes consistently highlighted the value of the preliminary work with stakeholders, the depth of community engagement, the involvement of public health and local authority partners, and the use of a broadly constituted advisory group as part of a responsible research and innovation approach. The proposal was also recognised for its potential social and economic impact alongside its academic contribution, reflecting the value of undertaking civic groundwork before ideas are fixed and bids are written.
As Lorenzo reflects:
“Although this particular bid was not funded, the feedback emphasised that the strength of the proposal lay not just in the science, but in the team we assembled and the early work with local partners and communities. HDRC Portsmouth was instrumental in enabling that engagement, helping to ensure the research is grounded in real‑world need and has clear routes to impact as we prepare for a future submission.”
For Portsmouth academics aiming to develop impactful research that addresses health inequalities in the city, the message is simple: get in touch early. HDRC Portsmouth can help map stakeholders, enable co‑production, provide insight from a council, community and commissioning perspective, support recruitment of groups that are often harder to reach, and help ensure project findings are shared beyond standard academic channels. Where appropriate, we can also contribute expertise that can be costed into projects depending on capacity and need.
If you’re developing a project and considering how to link it into communities, commissioners, and policy influence, contact HDRCPortsmouth@port.ac.uk to start the conversation.