PRN Newsletter

The PRN newsletter will be sent out quarterly to all PRN members and will contain the latest news and activities of the PRN and the individual Interest Groups. This will also include links to resources, outputs and recordings.

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February 2026

From our Interest groups:

  • GroundsWell:
    • Rukun Khalaf, a GroundsWell PhD student was runner up in the University of Liverpool Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition. You can watch her video on our blog.
    • ‘Green Spaces, Growing Communities’ blog explores three standout green spaces (Princes Park, La Salle Hotel School, and Vauxhall Health Centre Garden) and speaks to the volunteers, asylum seekers, healthcare workers, and families who bring them to life.

Events and Conferences:

  • Prevention Research Conference is taking part in Birmingham, UK, March 4-5th 2026.
  • ‘Impact-oriented research’ ECR Impact Roundtable, online, April 2026.
  • ‘Impact-oriented research’ Follow-up co-creation event, hybrid, May 2026.
  • ‘GroundsWell’ 3-part webinar series: Common Ground: Co-creating Healthier Urban Environments. Part 1 held on 15th Jan 2026, Part 2 to be held Thurs 19th Mar 2026, 14:30.

October 2025

PRN Innovation Fund has launched!

Support is available for projects which align with the objectives of the PRN – exploring, capturing, disseminating prevention research practices and methods. We are particularly interested in proposals which expand the reach of the PRN to researchers who may not traditionally consider themselves as ‘prevention researchers’.

The call for applications for funding closes on Wednesday 5th November 2025

From our Interest groups:

Events and Conferences:

  • Prevention Research Conference is back for 2026! Taking part in Birmingham, UK, March 4-5th 2026.
  • ‘Management of Commercial Interactions in Research’ upcoming meeting: To Declare or Not to Declare, Thurs 23rd Oct 2025, 13:00.
  • ‘Impact-oriented Research’ upcoming meeting: Creating impact in health research from a funder’s perspective, February 2026.
  • ‘SIPHER’ lunchtime webinar series, 30-40 mins. Find full details: https://uofglasgow.zoom.us/ze/hub/HealthMod
  • ‘VISION’ upcoming webinar: Understanding Economic Abuse, 28 Oct 2025, 11:00
  • ‘VISION’ upcoming webinar: Using Natural Language Processing to Understand Domestic Violence and Abuse Data: Opportunities, Challenges, and Risks, 13 Nov 2025, 10:00

July 2025

We are delighted to announce that Anna Orme has joined the PRN Management team as the Network’s manager on a part-time basis.

From our Interest groups:

  • Impact-oriented research: New article published containing data gathered from UKPRP funded Consortia has been published in Research Evaluation. Access this publication.
  • SPECTRUM: Following completion of the Consortium, SPECTRUM published a series of impact case studies representing selected examples of SPECTRUM’s work, these involve collaboration across disciplines and sectors, with a primary focus on addressing the commercial determinants of health and preventing Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs).
  • SIPHER: The grant-funded period for SIPHER has now concluded, but researchers remain enthusiastic about exploring new collaborations and joint activities and are happy to offer advice and share insights based on the experience gained during the SIPHER Consortium. Read the SIPHER Learning and Evaluation 2019-2025 Report.
  • GroundsWell: Rob Bushby, Avril Johnstone and Mariam Jack share how GroundsWell is approaching health inequalities across its different work packages.

Events and Conferences:

  • Prevention Research Conference is back for 2026! Taking part in Birmingham, UK, March 4-5th 2026, the call for abstracts closes on Wednesday 10th September 2025.
  • Register for the Society for Social Medicine & Population Health 69th Annual Scientific meeting, Bradford, 10-12th September 2025
  • ‘Management of commercial interactions in research’ upcoming meeting: To Declare or Not to Declare, Thurs 23rd Oct 2025, 13:00.
  • ‘Public Involvement (PPI)’ upcoming webinar with two talks: The challenges and successes of building a lived experience network of people living with addiction; and Evaluation of public involvement using creative methods. September 2025.
  • ‘Impact-oriented research’ upcoming meeting: Building a pathway to impact using a contributions approach, Mon 11th Aug 2025
  • SIPHER’s successful final Showcase event brought together partners, funders, and colleagues to reflect on five years of collaboration, policy impact, and innovation in systems science. Watch the final showcase highlights video and access event resources.
  • New ‘GroundsWell’ ECRs & Partners rolling webinar series. Recordings can be found at https://groundswelluk.org/Newsandevents/

September 2024 

From our Interest groups:

  • Public involvement (PPI): A new interest group, aiming to share, compare and reflect on approaches to integrating public involvement within the co-design, delivery, and dissemination of prevention research. This will be lead by Rebecca Howell and Dr Rachel O’Donnell.
  • Management of commercial interactions in research: After offering PRN members the opportunity to take over, Dr Gemma Mitchell has been appointed as the new lead, with Prof. Niamh Fitzgerald continuing in her role as senior support.
  • Impact-oriented research: Another Interest Group that is now under new leadership, with Dr Liz Such and Dr Pamela Rackow have been appointed to lead.
  • Systems thinking and complex systems: This group has created an online forum to connect colleagues from across the prevention research community interested in systems thinking and complex systems approaches to benefit public health. Take me to the Systems forum.

Events and Conferences:

June 2024 

From our Interest groups:

  • Systems thinking and complex systems: This group has created an online forum to connect colleagues from across the prevention research community interested in systems thinking and complex systems approaches to benefit public health. Take me to the Systems forum.
  • Commercial sector interactions: Looking for new leadership, get in touch if you’re interested in joining.
  • Impact-oriented research: Looking for new leadership, get in touch if you’re interested in joining.

Events and Conferences:

March 2024 

From our Interest groups:

  • Systems thinking and complex systems: This group has created an online forum to connect colleagues from across the prevention research community interested in systems thinking and complex systems approaches to benefit public health. Take me to the Systems forum.
  • Commercial sector interactions: Looking for new leadership, get in touch if you’re interested in joining.
  • Impact-oriented research: Looking for new leadership, get in touch if you’re interested in joining.

Events and Conferences:

  • ‘Commercial sector interactions’ upcoming meeting: UKPRP practices and PRN policy on 26th March 2024, 10:00
  • ‘Systems thinking and complex systems’ upcoming meeting: The VISION Consortium on 2nd May 2024, 10:00
  • Sign up for the SPECTRUM Consortium Alcohol Knowledge Exchange workshop taking place in Edinburgh, January 2025
  • Register for the ActEarly Conference on 18th April, 2024
  • Join the meeting: System-based approaches to physical activity: Learning from applied research and active doing on 17th April 2024, 11:45
  • ESRC funding call: Transforming data collections infrastructure for social science. Closing date: 16 April 2024 4:00pm
  • A World Out There: NCD Prevention Research in the Global Health Policy Agenda. Watch the keynote presentation by Alison Cox on YouTube.

January 2024 

We’ve rebranded!

  • The Prevention Research Network (formerly UKPRP Community of Practice)
  • Interest Groups (formerly Development Themes)

From our Interest groups:

  • Commercial interactions: Next meeting – Tuesday 26th March 2024
  • Impact-oriented research: Get early access to the ‘Impact approaches of the UKPRP Consortia’ report
  • Systems thinking and complex systems: Upcoming 2024 webinar series

Events and Conferences: