Making Research Count

Making Research Count is first and foremost a regional initiative, comprising a network of local programmes based currently in ten university social work departments throughout England, aiming to promote '‘knowledge-based practice” in social work and social care.

Local role
One of our main strengths and ‘selling points’ is that we work locally with our local authority and agency partners, in a manner which they have helped choose. Currently some 60 local authorities, voluntary and private agencies, NHS Trusts and other relevant bodies subscribe to the initiative. The different university programmes work in different ways; some run workshops and seminars for each individual agency partner and deliver them on their own premises. Others organise their programme on a regional basis, and all agencies come together for each event. Some universities offer a mix of the two. In addition regional conferences are organised on a regular basis.

Future events can be viewed here. Places are free to staff from agencies in membership with the university mounting the event.

Past events, throughout the country, can be viewed here.

National role
Making Research Count staff from the ten universities meet regularly to promote the development of the network, to ensure the complementarity of the programmes they run locally, and on occasions to plan national events.

Making Research Count is keen to forge links with Government Departments, and the Associations, Councils and Institutes engaged in the promotion, regulation and research agenda of social work and social care. In addition, the network seeks to influence the shape of evidence based practice, and to contribute to the debate about appropriate research methodologies in the field of social care.

Two exciting developments in 2008 and 2009 have led to work being undertaken for both C4EO and the CWDC.

C4EO
Making Research Count is pleased to be working as a delivery partner with SCIE, in the DCSF funded Centre for Excellence and Outcomes in Children and Young People’s Services - C4EO.

The four core partners in C4EO are the National Children’s Bureau (NCB), the National Foundation of Educational Research (NFER), the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) and Research in Practice (RIP). There are also a number of strategic partners, including the Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA), the Family & Parenting Institute (FPI), the National Youth Agency (NYA) and the Institute of Education (IoE).

The Centre is being led by Christine Davies CBE, former Director of Children’s Services in Telford & Wrekin Council and Programme Director, Narrowing the Gap.

CWDC
Having successfully provided research support to practitioners undertaking small-scale research projects, under the CWDC 2008-2009 programme of practitioner-led research projects, Making Research Count is again working with practitioners in the 2009-2010 CWDC programme. Further details available here.

Every Child Matters (ECM) Research and Practice Briefings
Making Research Count has collaborated in the production of a series of research briefings. Originally commissioned by the DoH and known as Quality Protects Research Briefings, they subsequently became Every Child Matters Research and Practice Briefings: children and families and are published by DfES/DCSF. All sixteen briefings can be downloaded here.