{
  "abstract": "Background Many local authorities (LAs) are growing their research-capacity to make evidence-informed decisions that impact on the health of their populations. There is no agreed definition of what constitutes ‘research’ in LAs. Some use the UK Policy Framework for Health and Social Care Research definition; others use broader definitions. Not having an agreed definition of research in LAs has been a barrier to developing consistent approaches to LA research governance and infrastructure.Our aim was to develop a definition of research in an LA context.Methods A modified Delphi method, consisting of two online rounds followed by a workshop, was used. In Round One (R1), 60 panellists from a wide range of LAs (recruited via online survey) were asked to review 24 potential definitions and indicate agreement or disagreement with them. Forty-eight (80%) responded. Definitions with high agreement (defined as > 75%) were refined and circulated in Round Two (R2). In R2, panellists indicated levels of agreement by scoring each definition between 1 (strongly disagree) and 6 (strongly agree) on a scale. Forty-six panellists (77%) responded. Medians for each definition were calculated.The final workshop involved twelve members of the project Steering Committee (consisting of local authority officers, council and university-based research staff, and lay members). R2 responses were reviewed in two separate groups and a final definition suggested by each. These final definitions were then used by the full group to agree a consensus definition.Results Ten of the R1 definitions achieved high agreement. These were revised and combined into five definitions for R2.All R2 definitions achieved median scores of at least 5. All five definitions were therefore considered at the final face-to-face workshop which resulted in the following definition:Local authority research supports decision making about practice, policies and interventions at a local, regional or national level and/orIt helps us understand how people are impacted by the context in which they live, work and go about their daily lives.Research uses structured, organised and reproducible methods to:produce new information or knowledge, which may include testing an idea, theory or new intervention and/orprovide a new interpretation of existing information. This may include routinely collected data being used for a new purpose, as well as publicly available data.Conclusion Guidance to accompany the definition is in development. Future work will explore how it works in practice and its usefulness in helping to establish LA research infrastructure.",
  "authors": [
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "NIHR Research Support Service Specialist Centre for Public Health, Newcastle University, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK"
      ],
      "name": "Louise Hayes"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "NIHR Research Support Service Specialist Centre for Public Health, Newcastle University, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK"
      ],
      "name": "Laura Brown"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "NIHR Research Support Service Specialist Centre for Public Health, Newcastle University, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK"
      ],
      "name": "Sarah Sowden"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University of Southampton and Oxfordshire County Council, Southampton and Oxford, UK"
      ],
      "name": "Adam Briggs"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Public Contributor, N/A, N/A, UK"
      ],
      "name": "Abi Dennington"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Public Health, Slough Borough Council, Slough, UK"
      ],
      "name": "Vanita Dutta"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Health Determinants Research Collaboration (HDRC) Doncaster, Doncaster Council, Doncaster, UK"
      ],
      "name": "Susan Hampshaw"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Health Determinants Research Collaboration (HDRC) – Tower Hamlets, London Borough of Tower Hamlets, London, UK"
      ],
      "name": "Emily Humphreys"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Institute of Public Health and Wellbeing, University of Essex, Colchester, UK"
      ],
      "name": "Tracey Johns"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Public Health, London Borough of Islington, London, UK"
      ],
      "name": "Alexandra Levitas"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Health Determinants Research Collaboration (HDRC) North Yorkshire, North Yorkshire Council, Northallerton, UK"
      ],
      "name": "Katie Needham"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Health and Adult Services, North Yorkshire Council, Skipton, UK"
      ],
      "name": "Rachel Murphy"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "NIHR Research Support Service Specialist Centre for Public Health, Newcastle University, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK"
      ],
      "name": "Laura Renwick"
    }
  ],
  "title": "P55 What do we mean by ‘research’ in a local authority setting?",
  "uid": "4157ee8d-7516-5cf5-a92b-75aad90e6774"
}