Evaluating the AGE UK Ilse of Wight (IOW) grant project services in relation to their effects on the LGBTQ+ community
Research Institution / Organisation
University of Portsmouth
In Collaboration With
Hampshire Office of Police and Crime Commissioners (OPCC)
Principal Researcher
Elizabeth Gray
Level of Research
Masters
Project Start Date
January 2020
Research Context
AGE UK IOW is a grant service supplied by the Hampshire Office of Police and Crime Commissioners (OPCC) on the Isle of Wight. This research piece aims to evaluate the services provided by AGE UK IOW to the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transsexual (LGBT) 50+ community. This, in turn, will give a wider understanding as to its effects on the LGBT/Queer plus (Q+) community whether positive, encouraging confidence in police reporting, or negative such as dividing the community. As a result, it will be able to highlight areas of exemplary work and areas where improvements could be made, with the intent to give resolution to these.
As a grant project, AGE UK IOW relies on the financial support of the OPCC to carry out its charity work, however, it is yet to be evaluated as to its effects. This research will explore options to further branch out the AGE UK IOW project to other areas of Hampshire where applicable and shown to be efficient.
Aims
to evaluate the performance and suitability of services provided by the AGE UK IOW project on the LGBTQ+ community and potential expansion
to highlight areas which the project is excelling in as well as limitations which require recommendations
Objectives
identify the services provided by AGE UK IOW using the available information and launch documentation
critically explore existing knowledge surrounding hate crime
conduct primary research with service users of AGE UK IOW
conduct thematic analysis on research findings
assess whether it applies to other areas of Hampshire and explore the possibility of expansion future direction
Research Methodology
This research will use primary qualitative methods to understand and find an answer to the proposed question. The qualitative methods used will include focus groups and a thematic analysis. The research will consist of two focus groups made up of five service users. The focus group aims to be an hour-long guided discussion; it is guided in terms of conversation prompts. This said the focus group intends to have an open discussion mostly lead by the participants. In comparison to alternative methods, focus groups are cost-effective and consume less time than other qualitative methods. Participation will be voluntary and exclude anyone who is not a service user of the AGE UK IOW hate crime services. This focus group will be used to gather opinions and thoughts on the hate crime services provided by the AGE UK IOW.
Following this, further analysis will take place through an inductive thematic analysis. A thematic analysis is where themes from qualitative data can be identified and analysed in order to gather patterns and meanings. This will be done by identifying common themes which occur in the focus group and coding them due to the direction of the data content. Thematic analysis is a flexible way to analyse data whilst engaging in the subject background and context. Although the primary focus is the use of qualitative methods, these will be supported by previous research and statistical data. The statistical data will be gathered from the gatekeepers, OPCC, and through secondary research of online published sources, such as the Statistical Hate Crime Bulletin. The use of statistics will validate the results as ‘scientifically sound’, giving them more generalisable meaning. By using both qualitative methods and statistics legitimacy will be added to the overall research findings
Interim reports and publications
Date due for completion
August 2020
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