Director of Studies (DoS):
Professor Helen Lloyd
Second Supervisor: Dr Kristin Liabo
Third Supervisor: Professor Heike Roms
Second Supervisor: Dr Kristin Liabo
Third Supervisor: Professor Heike Roms
The NIHR Applied Research Collaboration (ARC) South West is inviting applications for a PhD studentship, funded by an ARC South West Doctoral Award, to commence on 1 October 2026 or as soon as possible thereafter. For eligible students the studentship will cover Home tuition fees plus an annual tax-free stipend of at least £21,805 for 3 years full-time. We welcome applicants who wish to study less than full-time, provided they are intending to complete their studies within the ARC funding period. The student would be based at the University of Plymouth. A training and development budget will also be provided to support the activity of the student.
Project description
The NIHR now require researchers to ensure their studies are fully inclusive and address health inequalities. This means that researchers must broaden out who we involve in research. We need to understand who are experiencing health inequalities within our thematic areas of work and invite them to design the research with us.
People who experience health inequalities often also experience discrimination and other barriers to taking part in research. This is also true for some groups of staff who feel marginalised as less knowledgeable in their workplaces. Both these groups can feel alienated by the technical language used in research, and they can feel unwelcome or uncertain in formal meetings.
People who experience health inequalities often also experience discrimination and other barriers to taking part in research. This is also true for some groups of staff who feel marginalised as less knowledgeable in their workplaces. Both these groups can feel alienated by the technical language used in research, and they can feel unwelcome or uncertain in formal meetings.
Playful and arts-based approaches to co-production have been highlighted as useful in making research more inclusive (Phillips et al 2024). Play and art can help people understand one another. It can help to enhance the relevance of lived experience and practice knowledge, alongside and equal to technical knowledge. Play and art-based approaches can also help people stay engaged in a research process that can otherwise be experienced as boring or arduous.
Co-production is recognized as important but doing it in an engaged, creative and inclusive way can be difficult. There are individual examples of good practice, but a lack of ready-to-use tools to help lower the barriers so that researchers can apply simple measures that make co-production meetings more inclusive for everyone.
The proposed project aims to create easy-to-use inclusive co-production approaches and tools. Its objectives are to:
The proposed project aims to create easy-to-use inclusive co-production approaches and tools. Its objectives are to:
- Conduct a literature review of creative and inclusive co-production
- Interview researchers and public members who have been involved in creative co-production, with a focus on inclusive practices
- Use findings from the interviews to co-design tools to support co-production
- Evaluate the tools by testing them in a small set of ARC-resourced studies
If you wish to discuss this project further informally, please contact Professor Helen Lloyd. Queries about the award itself can be directed to arcsouthwest@exeter.ac.uk.
Funding
The studentship is supported for 3 years and includes full Home tuition fees plus a stipend of £21,805 per annum 2026/27 rate. We welcome applicants who wish to study less than full-time, provided they are intending to complete their studies within the ARC funding period (excluding Student visa holders who are required to study full-time to meet UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) sponsorship guidelines).
The studentship will only fully fund those applicants who are eligible for Home fees with relevant qualifications. Applicants normally required to cover International fees will have to cover the difference between the Home and the International tuition fee per annum.
There is no additional funding available to cover NHS Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) costs, visa costs, flights etc.
Doctoral Award Person Specification
Essential
- Hold a 1st or 2:1 bachelor’s degree, or equivalent If not, you will usually need to have a relevant Master’s degree
- Have prior research experience or training to prepare for a PhD
- Not already hold a relevant PhD or equivalent
- Show strong academic and professional skills needed to complete a PhD
- If you're including a clinical or practice element, show a commitment to a career as a practitioner academic.
Desirable
- Demonstrate originality and independent critical thinking in proposing research with real-world benefits for patients, the public, and the health and social care system
- Knowledge of the priorities in the area of research interest
- Demonstrate an alignment with NIHR strategic priorities, where applicable.
Successful applicants will become members of the NIHR Academy, and further information about this can be found on the NIHR website.
There is no additional funding available to cover NHS Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) costs, visa costs, flights etc.
How to apply
To apply, please select the ‘Online application’ link above. Please include the following documents with your application
- CV / résumé.
- Personal Statement (outlining your academic interests, prior research experience and reasons for wishing to undertake the project).
- Degree certificates and transcripts (please provide interim transcript if you are still studying).
- Contact information for two referees familiar with your academic work.
- If relevant, proof of English Language Competency (Applicants whose first language is not English will be required to demonstrate proficiency in the English language with an IELTS Academic of 6.5 overall with a minimum of 5.5 in each component, or equivalent).
NIHR are committed to equality, diversity and inclusion in everything we do. Diverse people and communities shape our research, and we strive to make opportunities to participate in research an integral part of everyone’s experience of health and social care services. We develop researchers from multiple disciplines, specialisms, geographies and backgrounds, and work to address barriers to career progression arising from characteristics such as sex, race or disability. Please let us know if you need any reasonable adjustments made to the application process and we will be happy to explore whether this is possible.
Potential applicants working in community, social care and public health are welcome to contact us to explore their suitability.
Please view a list of
supporting documents to upload with your application.
For more information on the admissions process generally, please visit our
how to apply for a research degree webpage or contact the Doctoral College at research.degree.admissions@plymouth.ac.uk.
The closing date for application is 21 July 2026.
Shortlisted candidates will be invited for interview the week beginning 17 August. We regret that we may not be able to respond to all applications. Applicants who have not received a response within six weeks of the closing date should consider their application has been unsuccessful on this occasion.
NIHR Applied Research Collaboration