Creative Research Services
We believe that understanding the complexities of research topics requires creativity in methods and approaches. We specialise in innovative research techniques and communication strategies.
We’re passionate about co-creative projects that actively involve participants in the research process, as well as producing engaging outputs that resonate deeply with target audiences.
By thinking outside the box and tailoring our methods to the unique needs of each project, we ensure that our research is not only insightful but also impactful and accessible.
Explore recent creative research projects…
Webinar - Creative Research in Action: insight, inclusion, impact
We routinely run webinars for our community and recently had the pleasure of hosting a dynamic, interactive session on how creativity can enrich insight, inclusion and impact in research. We were joined by our collaborator Hannah Mumby (artist) and delivered a jam-packed hour on creative research theory and practice. You can read more about this event on our blog!
Encountering the world with i-docs, Bristol University Press
Our creative research work is focused on innovative approaches to knowledge creation and dissemination, including developing novel and experimental research methods.
Encountering the World with i-Docs, a new book by Progress Today's Lead Researcher Dr. Ella Harris, will be out with Bristol University Press in January 2025 as part of Helen Kara’s Creative Methods book series.
The book explores the value of i-docs (web based, multimedia documentaries) as a creative research method and provides an engaging guide on using i-docs to examine and communicate research subjects. It includes a template for ‘thinking with i-docs,’ encouraging researchers to explore how planning an i-doc, without creating anything digital, can offer new analytical perspectives.
Social and Cultural Infrastructure, The British academy and london development trust
Ella is delivering creative and participatory research for The British Academy as part of their national investigation into Social and Cultural Infrastructure. In collaboration with London Development Trust, Ella is exploring young people’s views on what they need to thrive socially and culturally. At the heart of this innovative project is the development of a creative card deck method, designed to help young people convey their social and cultural needs to decision-makers, ensuring their insights and experiences inform future policies.
Caring in Bristol, Creative research for youth shelter design
Steadfast in their mission to end homelessness in the city of Bristol, Caring in Bristol teamed up with us on research to inform the design of a much needed new youth shelter. Using a co-design and trauma informed approach, we conducted creative research with young people who access their services. We ensured that young people were involved from the very beginning, including by holding a drop in session where they had a say in what methods we should use and what outputs we should produce. This ensured that the research processes were appropriate and engaging, and that the new shelter is informed by their experiences and needs. We’re now back at Caring in Bristol to help the team evaluate the shelter in its first year of operation.
Caring in Bristol, Participatory Research
Research and Consultancy on Urban Change
Our research team has special expertise in urban change, placemaking and precarity.
Rebranding Precarity (Zed Books), Ella’s debut book, explored the glamorisation of precarity after the 2008 financial crash in London through the lens of pop-up culture. Based on long-term empirical research, it offers valuable insights into the normalisation of crises in housing, labour and gentrification.
Mobilising this expertise, we’ve been invited to consult on academic research projects (including at Goldsmiths University and Royal Holloway University) as well as deliver talks and workshops for stakeholders such as Citizens Advice, London Development Trust and Truth, Marketing Insights.
Diversity and inclusion in art education, The Runnymede trust
VISUALISE was a major investigation into diversity and inclusion in art education in England. We partnered with The Runnymede Trust to plan and run creative focus groups in schools across the country, working with young people to explore their experiences of race and inclusion in art lessons, as well as their perceptions of careers in the arts.
arts as evidence, Natural england
The Social Sciences team at Natural England has a goal to integrate arts based approaches into Natural England’s evidence base. In partnership with London Development Trust, we helped to deliver the ambitious ‘Arts as Evidence’ project. Ella led on creating a thinking tool that will enable environmental scientists to imagine and activate arts-science collaborations. The tool helps scientists to understand the values of arts approaches and get beyond path of least resistance thinking to find novel ways of doing environmental research and management.
Youth Insights with Gengaged for Nike and Sports Direct
Our creative research techniques are highly effective when working with young people. In partnership with major sports brands, we conducted dynamic focus groups to gather insights from young Londoners about the future of sports retail. These lively and engaging sessions offered skill development opportunities and featured exciting free giveaways alongside the research activities. Young participants were articulate in sharing their concerns, passions, and hopes, and in identifying how brands can better support their communities to thrive. This approach not only enriched our data but also empowered young people to actively shape the future of sports retail.
The Lockdown Game, Participatory Interactive Documentary, The Leverhulme trust
How can co-creative processes build bridges between people while allowing room for difference?
In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Ella collaborated with an artist and web developer to facilitate a group of Londoners to co-create an interactive documentary about their experiences of Lockdown. Led entirely by the interests, concerns and creativity of participants, the i-doc documents their personal and collective fears, frustrations and hopes.
The project is a testament to how i-doc making can be a forum for collective thinking, allowing individuals to express their unique experiences while also building connection and understanding with others.
You can explore The Lockdown Game here (press the remote to start) and read about Ella’s work with i-docs as a research method in Goldsmith Press’ new collection How to do Social Research With….
Truth Consulting, creative methods training
Ella was invited to lead an interactive workshop on creative methods for staff at Truth Consulting. Themed around the idea that ‘to see differently you have to do differently’ the workshop involved hands on activities, from drawing, to poetry, to mimicry, demonstrating the range of ‘perceptual equipment’ that creative methods can offer.
