Welcome to 'People in Research'

INVOLVE's national conference is for everyone who wants to learn about and contribute to the development of public involvement in NHS, public health and social care research.

Public involvement in research has come a long way since our first conference in 1998. In 2006, there is less talk about whether to involve members of the public and more talk about how to do it well and how to measure its impact .

The conference programme reflects where we are today and is also about looking to the future. It is designed to offer a choice of sessions that will be of interest to you whether you are a newcomer to the ideas of involvement in research or someone who already has some experience in this area.

These are some of the key sessions in the programme:

Themed Sessions
These sessions are an opportunity to focus on and explore key issues in some depth. Each session will include speakers and presenters. The audience will be asked to contribute their experiences and ideas and also to agree on some key issues which need to be addressed. The ‘Looking to the Future' session on Day 2 is when feedback from all 10 themed sessions will be shared. The choice of themes will be:

• User led and user controlled research
• Tensions of involvement
• Identifying and prioritising research
• Communication and aphasia
• Clinical research
• Engaging communities
• Developing strategies for involvement
• Evaluating the impact of involvement
• Children and young people
• Commercial research

Poster Talks
There will be posters on display during the conference. In addition to this, the poster talks session will invite presenters to speak informally for 5 minutes about their work and then answer questions from the audience. Each session will present a group of 4 posters.

Papers and Workshops
Papers and workshops are an opportunity to learn about some of the most recent developments in public involvement in research. You can find out what others have been doing and also share your own knowledge and experiences. Each session includes two papers or a single workshop.

The Soapbox
Is there something to do with public involvement in research that you feel absolutely passionate about? This is a chance to give voice to your passion. ‘The Soapbox' is our mini version of Speakers' Corner, except that Harry Cayton, the National Director for Patients and the Public at the Department of Health, is there to make sure that order prevails. On the day, you will be invited to put your name in the hat and if it gets pulled out you will have a maximum of 3 minutes to tell the pre-dinner audience exactly what is on your mind.