2023 events
Organised by the Impact Funding Team, the ESRC Festival of Social Science has run at the University of Southampton since 2019. Each festival year has focused on a different theme and has produced a wide variety of events.
This year's theme is 'Lifelong Wellbeing', which was chosen to coincide with the 75th anniversary of the NHS.
With last year's festival theme being 'My Local Area' which linked to the place-based agenda. Due to the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) coinciding with the festival, events in 2021 focused on Climate Change and the Environment. With the 2020 festival taking a new approach as a digital-first event focusing on Migration, Social Care and Climate Change.
Innovating For Sustainable Future Towns And Cities: An Interactive Challenge
Age: Everyone is welcome to attend.
Type: Participatory/Interactive
Host: Sian Campbell, Strategic Lead, People and Place, and Senior Enterprise Fellow, Southampton Business School, University of Southampton.
Date and Time (UK Time):06/11/2023 10:00 - 14:00
Future Towns Innovation Hub, University of Southampton Science Park
Free
Summary
Make Your Place is an inclusive enterprise and entrepreneurship challenge focused on making towns, cities, and communities more healthy, happy and sustainable. This event concludes with an Innovation Marketplace, where participants can share and evaluate their innovations
Description
The challenge will inspire you to think about where you live, its economy, its importance to the UK, and how you can contribute - through a career, enterprise, study, etc.
You will have the chance to develop ideas for products, services and initiatives that could support the economy of your place by analysing its key strengths, activities, and markets.
In doing so, you will develop ideas about what future towns and cities might look like, and what opportunities might be available.
Each participant will receive a digital badge which you can add to your CV as a record of your achievement. There will also be a small prize for the group who comes up with the best idea as voted for by the other teams!
Innovating For Sustainable Future Towns And Cities: An Interactive Challenge
Local Population Change And Policy Challenges In The Era Of 'levelling-up': BSPS Policy Forum
Age: Professionals
Type: Participatory/Interactive
Host: Professor Jane Falkingham, Director of the ESRC Centre for Population Change and PI of Connecting Generations, VP International and Engagement, University of Southampton. Professor Nicola Shelton, President of the British Society of Population Studies, Head of Health and Social Surveys Research Group, Epidemiology and Public Health, UCL. Professor Tony Champion, Emeritus Professor of Population Geography Newcastle University. Rich Pereira, Deputy Director for Population Statistics and Head of the Centre for Ageing and Demography, Public Policy Analysis, Office for National Statistics. Professor Grant Hill-Cawthorne, Managing Director of Research and Information and Librarian, House of Commons.
Date and Time (UK Time):06/11/2023 14:00 - 17:00
The British Academy, 10-11 Carlton House Terrace, St. James's, London SW1Y 5AH and online via Slido
Free - Please email cpc@soton.ac.uk to added to the invite list.
Summary
Hear from prominent members of the British Society for Population Studies (BSPS) on local population change and policy challenges in the era of 'levelling up', followed by an open policy forum for questions from attendees, ending with a networking reception.
Description
Join us for this policy forum event to reflect and celebrate 50 years of the British Society for Population Studies (BSPS). We will discuss local population change and policy challenges in the era of 'levelling up'. The event will also disseminate knowledge on complex local population variation and the value of data, provide an opportunity for discussion between cross-sector experts, and create a lasting message about the value of the BSPS and population and demography studies.
Local Population Change And Policy Challenges In The Era Of 'levelling-up': BSPS Policy Forum
Murder In The Citizens' Jury: A 25 Minute Dramatic Monologue With Q&A
Age: Young People (16-25) and Adults (over 25)
Type: Other
Host: Denise Baden, Professor of Sustainable Practice at the University of Southampton
Date and Time (UK Time):11/11/2023 15:00 - 16:00
Building 6, Room 1077 Southampton SO17 1BJ
Free
Summary
A 25 minute dramatic monologue by star of stage and screen Jack Klaff (Star Wars & others) followed by Q&A.
Description
Murder in the Citizens' Jury is a dramatic monologue set in a citizens' jury where eight people debate climate solutions. A murder threatens the status of citizens' juries themselves. It is a drama exploring the ethical crisis of the Director of Public Prosecutions who has to decide whether to prosecute a murder. If he does so, he will alienate his family, and it will mean the end for citizens' assemblies - a form of direct democracy which many believe could be the silver bullet to avert a climate crisis. The audience are invited to help the DPP make the decision via a voting app and slips on their free programme which provides more information.
Murder In The Citizens' Jury: A 25 Minute Dramatic Monologue With Q&A
Listening For Better Hearing; An Interactive Event Discussing Lifelong Hearing And Brain Health.
Age: All people are welcome.
Type: Other
Host: Dr Kate Hough, Research Fellow Dr Tracey Newman, Professor
Date and Time (UK Time):26/10/2023 11:41 - 19:45
Building 100, Room 4013, University of Southampton, Highfield Campus, S017 1BJ
Free
Summary
An information evening to explore exhibits about hearing, looking after our brain and cochlear implants. There will be a presentation with a guest speaker followed by an interactive panel discussion led by questions from the audience.
At the exhibits you will discover more about the world of hearing, cochlear implants and brain health. You will be able to explore everyday noises, find out what sounds might be damaging our ears and the things we can do to protect, preserve, and support our hearing health as we move through life. You will also be able to find out more about local community groups and services related to hearing and brain health.
Participants will get the chance to hear about people's experiences of changes in hearing and brain health, deafness, and cochlear implants from the people with lived experience alongside professionals in the field.
Description
Hearing loss affects up to 11 million people in the UK. It is often seen as something that just happens with age. Poorly managed or untreated hearing loss is associated with poorer outcomes in education and employment, and can be detrimental to a person's mental, emotional, and physical health. It increases the risk of depression and is the biggest, modifiable risk factor for dementia.
Hearing loss is perceived as a minor and inevitable inconvenience, hearing aids are seen as something for much older adults, and the understanding of how and when to access hearing health care is limited, and then tricky to navigate once inside the healthcare system.
Early intervention, use of personal protective equipment, hearing tests and the uptake of hearing aids and cochlear implants could reduce the otherwise detrimental effects of loss of hearing and improve quality of life. Despite effective interventions being available there is poor awareness and a reluctance to engage with them.
We have been engaging with communities in Southampton to meet people where they are, to listen and spark conversations around hearing and brain health. We have seen the value of this and want to continue these conversations at this event.
This event will draw together, share, and explore some of the learning through research that has been gleaned from working with members of local community groups in the community and from the lived experience of members of ALL_EARS our hearing loss PPIE group. You will have the opportunity to talk to professionals in the field of hearing and brain health, alongside speak to and hear from people with real life, lived experience of hearing and brain health.
Listening For Better Hearing; An Interactive Event Discussing Lifelong Hearing And Brain Health.
Pupil Voice For Promoting Inclusion In Schools
Age: Open to members of Senior Leaderships Teams and teachers (early years, primary, secondary, special schools), FE lecturers, academics, parents, Local Authority, other organisations that work with children and young people
Type: Discussion/Debate
Host: Kiki Messiou, Professor of Education
Date and Time (UK Time):01/11/2023 15:30 - 17:00
St. John's Primary and Nursery School, French Street, Old Town, Southampton, SO14 2AU
Free
Summary
Join us to enjoy a display of posters summarising work completed in five schools, between 15:30 - 16:00, and having informal discussion with teachers that led the process. Between 16:00 - 17:00, you will discover through short presentations, videos, and a Q&A, how inclusion can be promoted in schools through engagement with pupils' voices.
Description
The event will present the findings of a project , led by Professor Kiki Messiou, building on the findings of her international research.
The schools were involved in collaborative action research and focused on the following broad question: "How can we promote inclusion in schools through an engagement with pupils' voices?"
Each school identified an area of focus that related to inclusion and agreed a plan of how
they would explore this, using the pupil voice lens and participatory research approaches. In this way, solutions to the identified areas were addressed through active participation of children and teachers.
Benefits of attending: Find out how you can involve children and young people in schools, in order to address issues that may be of concern, as well as explore how existing learning and teaching practices can be developed through child-teacher collaborations.
What to expect: Explore different examples from each of the schools about how they approached the work within their own context. For example, one school focused on identifying barriers for boys' writing, another one focused on raising children's aspirations, whilst another focused on raising children's confidence. Pupil voice activities and dialogues between teachers and students were crucial for promoting inclusion and addressing each of the identified areas in each school.
Partner Schools include:
St John's Primary School
Mason Moor Primary School
Redbridge Primary School
St Mary's Primary School
Wordsworth Primary School
Pupil Voice For Promoting Inclusion In Schools
Knowing Your Legal Rights In A Medical Setting: An Empowering Workshop Using Films And Art To Inform Young People And Children About Their Legal Rights As A Patient.
Age: The event welcomes any parents, guardians and carers of children and young people who would like to be more informed about their children's rights as patients.
Type: Participatory/Interactive
Host: Dr Rebecca Limb, Lecturer in Children's Medical Law at Southampton University
Date and Time (UK Time):22/10/2023 10:00 - 12:00
Building 65, Room 1097, Avenue Campus, University of Southampton, SO17 1BJ
Free
Summary
Are you a young person aged 11 to 25? Would you like to learn more about your medical law rights?
This fun and interactive workshop will use the mediums of films and art to help you learn more about your medical law rights as a young person and adult, so you leave the workshop feeling more empowered than when you arrived about seeking medical advice and/or treatment in the future. This is a safe space for you to explore and ask questions about your rights as young patients.
This event is open to all young people and their families. No medical experience or pre existing medical conditions is required to attend the event. This event is designed to empower you for a time when you may seek medical advice from a pharmacist, GP, doctor or other healthcare professional at any time in your life.
Description
An interactive one-off workshop to help young people and children reflect on their medical law rights and to equip them with the information about their rights so they feel more empowered than when they arrived about seeking medical advice and/or treatment in the future. This is a safe space for you to explore and ask questions about your rights as young patients.
Knowing Your Legal Rights In A Medical Setting: An Empowering Workshop Using Films And Art To Inform Young People And Children About Their Legal Rights As A Patient.
Crafting For Wellbeing
Age: General public, people with lived mental health experience and students.
Type: Participatory/Interactive
Host: Dr Emma Palmer-Cooper, Lecturer in Psychology, University of Southampton. Evie Woodford, Psychology Graduate and Craft demonstrator. Dr Rachel Dadswell, Principal Teaching Fellow and Occupational Therapist.
TBC
Free
Summary
A series of workshops to utilising craft-based activities to discover the potential short-term benefits of crafting on wellbeing and why longer-term practice is encouraged. Participants can expect, colouring in, paper craft, drawing and yarn-based activities!
Description
Crafts such as knitting and crochet, and other creative activities like colouring-in and drawing, have been said to promote good mental health and wellbeing. Research from our group and others has demonstrated that when these activities are done in a purposeful and mindful way, they can improve well-being and reduce stress, across cultures and societal groups. Our workshops aim to demonstrate 'mindful crafting' and encourage you to support your wellbeing using these activities.
