Participation, Practice and Co-creation Research Community

The Participation, Practice and Co-Creation Research Community (PPC) explores the potential of the university museum as a place for creative experimentation, for curiosity, for collaboration and for sharing ideas and practice.

Key Research Questions

How can research help us to develop our practice by challenging the assumptions we hold about how visitors experience the museum?
How can we develop understandings of the role of collaborative and participatory research approaches within museums?
How can we develop good practice in collaboration with museum colleagues nationally and internationally?

Our projects have the potential to advance knowledge, to enrich our professional practice and to inform our public programmes, exhibitions and displays. Our projects take a person-centred approach and reach outside of the museum and university to invite participation from as wide a public as possible.

We understand research as being

‘an inclusive process of enquiry undertaken by practitioners working alongside academic and non-academic researchers within an open and exploratory environment where expertise is valued non- hierarchically.’

(Pringle, E. Rethinking Research in the Art Museum, 2020: 163)

This research community responds to the Fitzwilliam’s Research & Impact Strategy in which a vision for research is set out in “Our diverse collections and audiences inspire our research, and we aim to ensure that our research inspires, involves and benefits those audiences”. It also connects with the Collections - Connections - Communities Strategic Research Initiative, a new interdisciplinary research Initiative, which aims to transform the relationship between researchers and the public, nucleating debate around societal challenges to create future pathways towards more just, creative, sustainable and inclusive futures.

Initial Strands of Enquiry (2022 - 3)

Exploring Museum Practice: Focusing on the what, why and how of what we do through employing action research methodologies to make change.
Developing Co-Created Research: Testing different methodologies for collaborative and participatory university museum research.
Investigating Cultural Value: Understanding and evidencing the difference arts and culture make to people’s lives.

Our initial guiding questions:

How can research help us to develop our practice by challenging the assumptions we hold about how visitors experience the museum?
How can we plan for and measure the impact of co-created research which doesn’t necessarily fit into the usual university and museum structures and expectations?
How might we interrogate and challenge some of the hierarchies within the museum, university, and broader society through more participatory approaches to research?
How can collaborative approaches to research enrich and extend our understanding of the cultural value of museum buildings, displays and programming?
How can we develop understandings of the role of collaborative and participatory research approaches within museums?
How can we develop good practice in collaboration with museums colleagues nationally and internationally?
How can we develop partnerships with community advocates and individuals, supporting participation of marginalised groups and improve access to museum research and collections?

You can read about our work on agreeing a set of core values to guide our collaborative and participatory work here.

Research Community Leads

Forthcoming Events

Future public events will be listed here
Staff can find details of internal workshops and talks on our intranet page

Related Projects

Participation, Practice and Co-creation Research Community

Sign up to our emails