Ask most people to tell you about the impact of research, and they’ll probably mention breakthroughs in medical treatments or cutting-edge advances in technology.
What many don’t realise is that the benefits are far more fundamental and far-reaching to ordinary people in everyday life – improving systems, driving change, and ensuring progress in areas that will never move forward without it.
It’s even more effective when communities themselves take the lead and invest in using co-design to shape future services and research.
Community-based research is an innovative approach and is already making a difference right here in Scotland to address one of the world’s most pressing issues – mental health.
Globally, more than one billion people are affected by mental health challenges, and Scotland is no exception. Close to £1 million is being invested to reframe the conversation around mental health from one of deficit and stigma to one of strength and connection – a concept of ‘Mental Wealth’. On the ground, The Collaboration for Mental Wealth in Moray could lead to tangible changes in services, transforming lives.
The Community Research Networks programme, funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and delivered by The Young Foundation, is enabling communities to lead research and has funded a new network here in Scotland. Bringing together an impressive coalition of partners, the Collaboration for Mental Wealth in Moray, led by the Moray Wellbeing Hub CIC and co-founded by Scotland’s National Digital Health & Care Innovation Centre, will bring together a number of other local partners – including local peer researchers – to measure the impact of new approaches to mental health challenges and advance the concept of ‘Mental Wealth’.
This approach will ensure that the project remains rooted in the needs and strengths of the community and help drive the impact of this initiative not just for the local area – for people everywhere. Moray, with its diverse communities and landscapes – from rural hamlets to larger towns – is an ideal testing ground. In addition, the programme is capacity building for research, equipping local people with transferable skills in research methodologies, data collection, and analysis, and how to conduct community research. The resulting ripple effect strengthens the community’s resilience and equips it to address future challenges independently, while also creating employment through community researchers.
More importantly, this kind of initiative empowers individuals to take ownership of their community’s challenges and actively participate in solving them. It deepens trust and engagement, fostering a sense of agency that can sustain long-term progress. By reframing mental health as Mental Wealth, the project encourages a positive and inclusive dialogue, reducing stigma and fostering proactive engagement.
The Rural Centre of Excellence for Digital Health & Care Innovation is part of Scotland’s Digital Health & Care Innovation Centre and is based in Moray. Through this centre of excellence, DHI is driving innovation in health and social care and stimulating new ways of engagement in research and innovation and testing new concepts with the aim of scaling these to other regions in Scotland and beyond, putting Moray on the map as a hub of innovation and change for wellbeing.
Read the article: The Herald article can be found here
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The Digital Health & Care Innovation Centre (DHI) is a national resource and key enabler and catalyst for change, occupying a unique and visible position at the heart of the innovation ecosystem for digital health and social care in Scotland. We’re a world-leading collaboration between the University of Strathclyde and Glasgow School of Art, publicly funded by the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) and the Scottish Government.
