Cumberland HDRC

11/02/2026

🗣️The Know Our Impact Youth Board is recruiting

The Child Health and Wellbeing Network's Youth Board is looking for young people aged 11+. This is for young people in the North East and North Cumbria who want to:

👥 Improve health and wellbeing for others their age
💬 Share their ideas and experience
💥 Be part of something that makes a real impact

To express interest or find out more, email Dan at cyp@risenortheast.co.uk
No closing date

10/02/2026

💬 Community-driven Regeneration workshop
📍 University of Lancashire Westlakes West Cumbria campus
📅 Wednesday 4 March 2026 10am – 3.15pm

The University of Lancashire invites you to a one-day workshop to explore community-driven area regeneration in the light of the recent Pride in Place government funding programme. The workshop will take place at the University of Lancashire’s Westlakes campus situated near Whitehaven, West Cumbria.

Please register to attend via the Eventbrite link by Wednesday 25 February:
🎟️ https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/community-driven-regeneration-workshop-tickets-1982194286470?

The workshop is being delivered jointly between the University of Lancashire and Cumberland Council. It will discuss how academic knowledge and expertise can be practically applied to support community development, specifically within the Pride in Place projects taking place across the North West. It will include a number of short introductions to researchers and their work in the morning, followed by collaborative sessions in the afternoon to explore concrete ideas to take forward.

Attendance at the workshop will be useful for people who live, work, or have an interest in the areas covered by the Pride of Place funding, particularly those who may be involved in the local Community Boards in the North West. Our starting point is the belief that, although it is vital that communities decide for themselves the improvements to make in their local areas, academics can offer evidence-based expertise and advice to help community members make their decisions and design and implement their priorities.

The workshop also offers a space for community groups and other organisations to meet and discuss shared concerns and ideas.

More information on the Pride in Place programme can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/what-is-pride-in-place

For further details of the workshop or to discuss any accessibility queries, please email PACT@lancashire.ac.uk.

A one-day workshop to explore community-driven area regeneration in the light of the recent Pride in Place government funding programme.

03/02/2026

Sponsored:

Have you ever wondered what research is all about? Is being part of research safe? Want to know how you can get involved to help shape the future of Black health in the UK?

Health and care research drives better treatments, improves care, and helps prevent illness.

The Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) will be chatting to GP and NIHR Research Fellow Dr Serge Engamba, where he’ll be answering your questions about health and care research, why inclusion in research matters and how you can get involved.

Submit your anonymous questions below and keep an eye on NIHR and The Voice’s social media channels in March for Dr Engamba’s replies!

https://bit.ly/3NWG0zP

27/01/2026

Join our team!

We're seeking a motivated and relationship-focused Development Officer to deliver targeted support to VCFSE organisations across Mid .

In this role, you’ll work closely with local groups to help them build resilience, increase capacity, strengthen governance, and access funding—ultimately contributing to healthier, more inclusive communities.

£27,507 – £29,190 FTE, 15 hours per week. 8 month contract with the potential for extension. Based in our Cleator Moor or Millom office (hybrid working available with travel across Mid Copeland).

https://cumbriacvs.org.uk/vacancies/development-officer-mid-copeland/

12/01/2026

📣 Research Officer role, we’re hiring!
🔎 Read more and apply via our QR code or link in the comments

We’re looking for a Research Officer to join our team to develop and deliver research that addresses the wider determinants of health. As part of our team, your work will be a part of a culture change, increasing Council staff confidence in using, sharing and creating new research evidence around the importance of the wider determinants of health. Co-production is key and you will be working with communities to ensure they have a clear voice throughout everything this research collaborative seeks to achieve.

What you’ll do:

✅ Develop and deliver research studies and systematic reviews
✅ Identify funding opportunities and assist with successful grant applications
✅ Ensure compliance with research protocols, data protection, and ethical standards
✅ Prepare reports, presentations, and briefings for stakeholders
✅ Engage with communities and partners to ensure research is inclusive and impactful
✅ Support the HDRC Research & Innovation Manager in establishing and delivering the HDRC

For more information about the role or to arrange an informal chat, please contact R&I manager Mike Siddall at mike.siddall@cumberland.gov.uk

Cumberland HDRC works in partnership with Cumbria CVS, Healthwatch Cumberland, University of Cumbria, and University of Lancashire

23/12/2025

⭐ Looking back on 2025 and ahead to 2026 ⭐
What a year! Our second year has been incredible, and the support we’ve received has meant so much. We want to say a huge thank you for being part of our journey. Working alongside our Cumberland Council colleagues, our partners Cumbria CVS, Healthwatch Cumberland, University of Cumbria and University of Lancashire and the communities across Cumberland, hearing their experiences, perspectives and what matters most to them has been inspiring and rewarding.

Our team highlights from 2025
🎟️ Delivering our annual event with Westmorland & Furness Council, connecting academic and community partners.
🕵 Recruiting and inducting 15 Community Co-Researchers, strengthening community involvement in research.
📝 Supporting and seeing the development of research projects that aim to address determinants of health in Cumberland, such as the development of the neurodiversity and emotional wellbeing service at Cumberland council, caseload management tool for social workers, and a joint project with North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust and University of Cumbria to look at ‘How rurality impacts cancer outcomes’.
🎨 Launching our creative community engagement project The Art of Wellbeing, opening up meaningful conversations around health and wellbeing.
👩‍🏫 Delivering 42 full training sessions, 8 bite sized training sessions and 10 webinars, with fantastic feedback and clear learning impact.
🪴 Our HDRC team growing to a full team of nine.

🔎 Looking ahead to 2026 🔎
👋 We are excited to welcome our Community Co-Researchers who will be starting their training in January 2026. Seeing what research they want to take forward, and supporting them to develop those ideas is an exciting next step.
🤝 Rolling out new community engagement initiatives.
👩‍🏫 We'll be launching a refreshed training programme and a Cumberland Council staff Research Network, stay tuned!
🗺️ Working with our new research groups to improve our current understanding of our research priorities within Cumberland
🔋 Supporting with and delivering new research exploring the determinants of health in Cumberland alongside our academic partners and community co-researchers.

Wishing those who celebrate a Merry Christmas, and everyone a restful break and a Happy New Year. Here’s to an exciting 2026 🚀

19/12/2025

🎉 Our CCR inductions have officially been held!

Over in Whitehaven and Carlisle, our Community Co-Researchers had the opportunity to come together in person. Both sessions were full of energy, curiosity, and a real sense of possibility. Sharing perspectives, experiences, and ideas, it was a wonderful beginning to exploring the scope they have to shape future research.

Our project officer Lianna Barrie says "The rooms felt alive with discussion, laughter, and enthusiasm, making it a really positive starting point and exciting moment for what comes next."

We're so excited to welcome the newest members of the HDRC team and can't wait to bring us all back together for the first day of training in the new year.

🚀 Big things ahead!

28/11/2025

📺A glimpse into the creation of our community art exhibition The Art of Wellbeing!

🎨Featuring insights from artist Stefan Escreet, partner Rosehill Theatre and HDRC's project officer Lianna, what a wonderful way to culminate the project and highlight the collaboration behind it.

❤️A huge thank you to everyone who contributed their creativity. Made by the community, for the community.

Art of Wellbeing art project organised through Cumberland Council's Health Determinants Research Collaborative

20/11/2025

What a day! 🌟On Tuesday, we hosted our Connecting For Change event, full of inspiring conversations, learning, and connection.

We loved having council colleagues, academic partners, third sector and community organisations, and some of our CCRs with us. Your ideas, feedback, and perspectives are helping us make our work more inclusive, relevant, and impactful.

A big thank-you to all our amazing presenters who shared their insights and sparked new ideas across the room 💡

We’re so grateful for everyone’s energy and enthusiasm and we can’t wait to keep the momentum going and get ready for Cumberland HDRC 2026 🚀

14/11/2025

🎧The Art of Wellbeing audio now live!

We're excited to share that the audio from our Art of Wellbeing sessions, where we spoke about acts of kindness, health and wellbeing, is now available!

These sessions are a great reminder of how powerful creative methods can be for community engagement, opening up new ways to connect, learn and grow.

A huge thank you to everyone who took part and to the wonderful artist Ragged Edge Productions who ran the sessions with so much enthusiasm and creativity.

Have a listen and let us know what you think!

In The Art of Wellbeing project, Stefan Escreet ran hands-on, sociable, creative sessions with groups all over Cumberland. Participants were guided through making paper puppets and inventing character biographies for them. We imagined these characters lived in the place we were in and this prompted....

29/10/2025

And just like that, recruitment for Community Co-Researchers has ended! 🎉

Over the past two months, Lianna (Research & Communities Project Officer) and Becky (Research Officer) for Cumberland HDRC, had the very difficult job of shortlisting over thirty-five expressions of interest and conducting ‘conversations’ with prospective community co-researchers, in preparation for our next phase of the Research Plan in 2026. What made the job so difficult was all expressions of interest that were submitted, were to such a high standard that it was plain to see Cumberland’s communities really want to support change and be part of the journey in tackling health inequalities!

❓What is a community co-researcher?
Community Co-Researchers (CCRs) will support community-led research by working closely with Cumberland Council’s HDRC team. CCRs bring invaluable lived experience and insight, helping ensure research is shaped by the realities of Cumberland’s communities.
The aim of this role is to support the design, delivery and sharing of research that reduces health inequalities, builds research-active communities, and informs local policy and practice.

🧍‍♀️🧍‍♂️I want to get involved- Are there other similar opportunities?

We are currently exploring another opportunity with the NIHR, who have an established Research Champions programme. This will be broader than the CCR programme with the HDRC, but it can be another way for you to be involved in embedding research and research activities in our communities across Cumbria.

📧If this is something you would be interested in, please contact Becky Clarke: Becky.clarke@cumberland.gov.uk

28/10/2025

Our Art of Wellbeing exhibition is officially HERE! Stop by to say hello to our paper puppet community and hear audio from their makers their thoughts and feelings about health and wellbeing where they live.

📅 25th October 2025 - 2nd November 2025

⏰ Monday - Friday, 11:00-15:00 & Saturday - Sunday, an hour before scheduled events

📍 Rosehill Theatre, Moresby, Whitehaven CA28 6SE