Patients and members of the public help shape our research on body measurement, shape and health. This page sets out the principles we follow and brings together trusted South Yorkshire, regional and national guidance for anyone planning involvement in this kind of research, including our collaborators and students.<\/p>\n
Our approach.<\/strong> We involve patients and the public (PPI) from the earliest stages of our research, and we encourage everyone we work with to do the same. Each project decides how best to do this. Researchers new to involvement can start with the national standards below and contact us for an informal conversation.<\/p>\n Why it matters here.<\/strong> Body measurement can feel personal. People tell us that privacy, dignity, how images are stored and who sees them, and the language used about bodies all shape whether they take part. Involving people early helps studies feel safe and acceptable, and it helps us include those who are often left out of body measurement research, such as young children, people with disabilities, people living with obesity and pregnant women.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Our own involvement and acceptability research shapes how we measure people. Families and public contributors told us that self-esteem, privacy and face visibility matter, so our 3D imaging protocols use untextured capture by default, remove faces before data are shared, and give approved researchers access only through a managed process. Sessions can be seated, supported or paused, with a parent or carer present. We review these practices as each new study and collaborator shares what its involvement work finds.<\/p>\n Please contact the Morphology Research Group to talk through involvement in body measurement research. We are happy to point you to the right local group or resource.<\/p>\n Last reviewed November 2026. We review this page each year.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Patients and members of the public help shape our research on body measurement, shape and health. This page sets out the principles we follow and brings together trusted South Yorkshire, regional and national guidance for anyone planning involvement in this kind of research, including our collaborators and students. Our approach. We involve patients and the … <\/p>\nPrinciples we follow<\/h2>\n
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National standards and guidance<\/h2>\n
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\nSix standards for good involvement agreed across the UK: inclusive opportunities, working together, support and learning, governance, communications and impact.<\/li>\n
\nThe NIHR’s hub of training, guides and practical resources for researchers and public contributors.<\/li>\n
\nA step-by-step introduction to involving the public in NHS, public health and social care research.<\/li>\n
\nWhat public involvement is, how it differs from taking part in a study, and the HRA’s principles for meaningful involvement.<\/li>\n
\nMRC’s commitment to equitable, inclusive public and patient involvement, including its public partnerships strategy<\/a>.<\/li>\n
\nPractical tools and guidance for engaging the public with university research.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nInvolving children, young people and families<\/h2>\n
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\nWebinars, podcasts and guidance on involving children and young people, including in health technology development.<\/li>\n
\nSouth Yorkshire Children and Young People’s Health Research treats co-production as a theme across all its work, with local examples and a mailing list for researchers.<\/li>\n
\nOur Fellowship’s co-design workshops with children aged 3 to 10 and their families, and the REACH: Big Voices Panel, inform how we run measurement sessions. Contact us to learn from this work.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nInclusive involvement<\/h2>\n
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\nA national network led by disabled people and service users, with guides on inclusive involvement and reaching people who are seldom heard.<\/li>\n
\nGuidance and templates for paying and supporting public contributors, including the NIHR payment guidance for researchers and professionals (PDF)<\/a>.<\/li>\n
\nEvidence and resources on what the public think about how health data are used. Useful when you plan how body images and measurements are stored and shared.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nRegional support: Yorkshire and Humber<\/h2>\n
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\nThe ARC’s approach to research with and by the public, its PPIE strategy, training and involvement blogs.<\/li>\n
\nThe BRC’s PPIE strategy and opportunities for people to help shape research on long-term conditions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nLocal support: Sheffield and South Yorkshire<\/h2>\n
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\nRun by Sheffield Teaching Hospitals and the University of Sheffield, with access to PPI panels, help setting up groups and named contacts.<\/li>\n
\nA curated list of national standards, payment policy, training and toolkits on inclusive participation and working with community researchers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nReporting involvement<\/h2>\n
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\nThe recommended checklists for reporting patient and public involvement in research papers. Staniszewska S, et al. GRIPP2 reporting checklists: tools to improve reporting of patient and public involvement in research. BMJ<\/em> 2017;358:j3453. doi:10.1136\/bmj.j3453<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\nPeer-reviewed evidence<\/h2>\n
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\nMaps how involvement affects research at each stage, from design and recruitment to dissemination, and the conditions that help it work.<\/li>\n
\nPools trial evidence and finds that involvement modestly improves enrolment, with less certain effects on retention.<\/li>\n
\nReviews published involvement frameworks and concludes that no single framework fits every study, so teams should adapt one to their context.<\/li>\n
\nFinds that few youth health studies report using young people’s advisory groups and proposes clearer reporting of how young people are involved.<\/li>\n
\nThe recommended checklists for reporting involvement in research papers (see above).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nTraining<\/h2>\n
Free<\/h3>\n
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\nFree, online and interactive, in three standalone modules. Written for public contributors, and useful for researchers writing funding applications.<\/li>\n
\nFree on the NIHR Learn platform. Covers designing research that includes groups often under-served by health research.<\/li>\n
\nFree, NIHR-funded e-learning in seven modules, with a certificate for each module. Relevant to UK patient and public involvement as well as global health.<\/li>\n
\nA curated list of mostly free online courses, including facilitation, trauma-informed practice and involvement in data and AI research.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nHow we involve people in body measurement<\/h2>\n
Talk to us<\/h2>\n