University of Glasgow - Schools - School of Health & Wellbeing - Byres Community Hub - Community engagement updates - Byres Hub June

Regional networks or through NCCPE? Uploading resources to a portal? Can contribute to Watermark Platinum award. Example-Queen Mary resources

Lancaster- Engagement portal- signposting to other resources but if wanted to share own resources there may be resistance. Can lean on reputational gains- sector leaders

Sometimes it's a misunderstanding of a process, or not quite knowing the root of their problem and what they want to know. For example: 'How do I prove the impact of this thing I've done?' This type of request often needs reworking from the start. Retracing their steps to the basics, the 'why'. If they had engaged with a PEP earlier in the process they wouldn't have this particular 'need' for training, as their engagement would already be working well for them!

However, when showcasing engagement practice it's easy to use the same case studies over and over again - academics notice this! Try not to privilege particular people or examples. Use a diversity of approaches that show a range of partners, budgets, outcomes, etc.

Some suggestions from an NCCPE Engage Academy session.

Building rapport and trust:

• active listening skills - understanding your counterpart

• understanding yourself and how you prefer to communicate. How do other people experience this?

• reflecting the communication patterns of other people; adapting to their communication preferences

• Interest in learning what methods work for engagement training and how others approach it, including creative and novel evaluation methods.

Challenges in Attendance and Engagement:

• How to get academics, especially busy and experienced ones, to attend training and stay engaged, ensuring diverse participation beyond just early-career researchers.

Reaching Hard-to-Reach Audiences:

• How to engage hard-to-reach departments or disciplines and ensure not just the same people are involved.

Sustainability and Long-term Impact:

• Ensuring the training leads to sustainable changes in practice and supports long-term public engagement as part of academic careers.

Tailoring Training:

• How to cater to different levels of experience (from beginners to experienced academics) and make training relevant to varied disciplines.

Evidencing Success:

• How to measure the success of engagement training beyond simple feedback and demonstrate its impact on academics’ work.

Training Content and Needs:

• What topics and skills should be covered in the training, and how to meet academics’ expectations and current trends in engagement practices.

Institutional Support and Resource Sharing:

• Interest in how other institutions promote and support engagement training, pooling resources, and managing training logistics.

Communication and Framing:

• How to speak the language of academics, making the case for the value of engagement and convincing them of its benefits to their careers.

• Difficulty in getting academics to sign up, attend, and commit to the full training, with drop-off rates and low attendance being common issues.

Time Constraints:

• Academics’ busy schedules and lack of time, often working unusual hours, make it hard to prioritize engagement training.

Recognising Value:

• Challenges in getting academics to see the importance and value of engagement training, especially senior academics who may not fully understand public engagement or knowledge exchange.

Awareness and Promotion:

• Ensuring academics are aware of available training and promoting it effectively to capture interest.

Engagement and Participation:

• Engaging a small and varied group with differing levels of experience, making it difficult to meet the wide variety of needs.

Understanding Public Engagement:

• Some academics don’t know what public engagement is or have a narrow view of it, leading to difficulties in convincing them of its relevance.

Impact and Evaluation:

• Measuring the impact of the training and achieving a shared understanding of high-quality public engagement.

• Many academics expect engagement training to be less useful than it actually is and are often surprised by its value and enjoyment.

Lack of Knowledge and Misconceptions:

• Academics often have lower baseline knowledge about engagement than expected, with misconceptions about public engagement (PE), audience needs, and the importance of evaluation.

Reluctance and Pushback:

• Some academics are hesitant to engage or don’t prioritise their own development, PhD students especially pushing back on the value of engagement.

Creativity and Collaboration:

• Academics may have untapped creativity but fear being creative, and they often overlook collaborative opportunities, assuming they must do everything themselves.

Focus on Personal Needs:

• Many come to training focused on their own questions or challenges rather than audience needs or mutual benefits in engagement.

Unawareness of Opportunities:

• Academics are often unaware of existing engagement opportunities and are surprised by the range of skills required for effective engagement.

Workload and Time Constraints:

• Workload and lack of time are significant barriers to attending training and investing in engagement.

• Spend time understanding academics' needs, expectations, and existing knowledge, and tailor the training accordingly to their career level, discipline, and goals.

Be Engaging and Practical:

• Make the training interactive, practical, and relevant to their work, using activities rather than just slides to demonstrate engagement techniques.

Emphasize Value and Applicability:

• Highlight the wide applicability of the skills they’ll develop and show how public engagement (PE) is relevant to their roles and university objectives.

Build Relationships and Trust:

• Be patient, empathetic, and consistent, creating a supportive environment that builds trust over time.

Keep it Simple and Convenient:

• Start small, keep sessions short, and make them as convenient as possible, showing that PE doesn't have to be complicated.

Leverage Existing Resources:

• Access and learn from existing resources and successful examples of engagement to enhance training.

Create a Genuine Connection:

• Be open, personable, and genuine, allowing time to get to know academics personally and make them feel valued.

Intention