Count Me In Too LGBT Research Project by University of Brighton

Count Me In Too is a groundbreaking research project that explores what it is like to be LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans) and to live, work or socialise in Brighton & Hove. It has been supported by thousands of local LGBT people, many of whom actively contributed to the design and content of the research. This means that Count Me In Too is not just about LGBT people – it has been designed by LGBT people, it asks the questions LGBT people wanted it to ask and it makes a real difference to the lives of LGBT people.

Details from questionnaires and focus groups have allowed the project to examine the realities of LGBT people’s lives, especially those within LGBT communities who are ‘marginalised’ – those whose needs and experiences are often overlooked.

The project has already published 10 reports based on its findings – reports that have influenced policy decisions made by statutory bodies including the NHS, the police and the local council. It is now organising community exhibitions to publicise some of the research findings and running an information desk for LGBT people and groups who are interested in using data/research to progress social change.

Check out our website for more details on the process, details of the LGBT Research Desk, free community summaries and access to full reports, and to find out how you can get involved!

Findings:

In 2006 Count Me In Too asked people who live, work and socialise in Brighton & Hove to be part of a large-scale research project that sought to help progress social change for LGBT people. 819 people took part in the questionnaire and 69 people participated in focus groups. From this information Count Me In Too has written vast array of reports, community summaries and exhibition materials. These deal with the general research findings, Domestic Violence and Abuse, Safety, Housing, Mental Health, General Health, Bi people, Trans people and Drugs & Alcohol. All the reports and community summaries, as well as further information on the project, can be found on the website and is free to download.

Count Me In Too is currently offering LGBT people/groups who work with LGBT people the opportunity to access and use data aside from that in its reports, or to find out more about other LGBT research, via its LGBT Research Information Desk. Email us for more details.

Background:

Count Me In Too built on learning from the Count Me In research project in 2000 and other local research into the experiences of local LGBT people. The project invited all LGBT people in the city to take part in a survey. The project has worked with identity groups within the LGBT collective who are less frequently engaged by research studies and who may not feel part of ‘LGBT Brighton’.

As a participatory action research project, Count Me In Too has involved a large number of individual people and organisations in different groups at different stages of the project – these people helped design the research tools, analysed the data and made recommendations based on them. The research has been carried out by Dr Kath Browne at the University of Brighton in partnership with Spectrum, Brighton & Hove’s LGBT Community Forum, working with LGBT people, LGBT groups and service providers including NHS and council services, to identify local LGBT needs. The project is supported by Brighton & Sussex Community Knowledge Exchange and the South Eastern Coastal Communities programme, with funding also provided by Brighton & Hove City Primary Care Trust and Brighton & Hove City Council.Additional themed analyses were funded by the Partnership Community Safety Team, Sussex Police, BHCC Social Care & Housing, Sussex Partnership Trust, and BHCTPCT.

The research tools were designed by a community Steering Group of LGBT people facilitated by the researchers, and included questions put forward by service providers and members of LGBT community groups.

Data was gathered from LGBT people who live, work and socialise in Brighton & Hove. In 2006, 819 people completed questionnaires and 69 people discussed issues in focus groups. These included LGBT people with shared identities, such as older people, young people, Black & Minority Ethnic people, parents, hate crime survivors and Deaf people.

The data was initially analysed by an Action Group composed of local LGBT people, and initial findings were published in June 2007 in an academic report with a parallel community report.

In the past two years, the project has produced 10 detailed reports with LGBT people and local service providers on a range of themes. Additional themed analyses reports have reported on Domestic Violence and Abuse, Safety, Housing, Mental Health, General Health, Bi people, Trans people and Drugs & Alcohol. These reports were informed by various Analysis Groups, composed of local LGBT people and service providers, who also included recommendations on how to address issues and needs identified from the data. Each themed analysis report has 2-page community summary that provides a ‘taster’ of the findings. There are also separate community summaries for findings regarding Deaf LGBT people and disabled LGBT people. All reports published by this project, and further information about the project, can be downloaded free from the Count Me In Too website.

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