Communities within spaces of flows

The Communities within Spaces of Flows project is situated in a period of public sector spending cuts in which services are stretched and there has been a government call for a return to localism to address well-being needs (Localism Act, 2011; The Scottish Government, 2009). This idealistic desire to involve people in local decision making and community empowerment is at odds with the evolving concept of community where the place related connectivity of traditional communities has been replaced by more dispersed social networks maintained by technology and new mobility patterns. The networks of interpersonal ties that provide sociability, support, a sense of belonging and social identity are now less likely to reside in place and are less able to react to local need. At the same time there is growing recognition of the importance of integrating digital technology and health (Tinder Foundation, 2011) and a need to find new mechanisms to support an ageing population with increasing accessibility needs (Musselwhite & Haddad, 2010).

The Connectivity and Conflict in Periods of Austerity project has illustrated how those with access to network capital (i.e. the resources, such as cars and mobile technology, needed to sustain and generate social capital) are best placed to exert influence on their localities while others remain excluded. This provides the grounding for this follow-up project with its revelations about middle class political activism and its effects on public services while other groups are marginalised. This poses fundamental questions about public engagement and people's ability to take control of their own well-being. This application for follow-up funding therefore explores important questions about technological interventions and their role in community well-being, fostering responsibility for place and local connectivity. The project will reflect on the fit of a combination of AHRC Connected Communities funded technologies, in addition to a collaborative travel App developed by the Sixth Sense Transport project (EPSRC Digital Economy funding, EP/J004650/1) (Davies et al. 2012), to extend and enable place based community support networks to obtain health and well-being gains. The project builds on the previous good working relationship with Wester Hailes and considers how the work of the Connected Communities groups might complement the more traditional patient/GP relationship and help produce measurable improvements in health.

In addition to the academic community (see academic beneficiaries) it is envisaged that the following groups will benefit from this research:

Local community groups and residents:

The main impact beneficiaries of this follow-on project will be the Wester Hailes Healthy Living Centre and its other partners (including Dove over 65's club, WHALE Arts Centre, West Edinburgh Time Bank, Prospect Community Housing and Gate 55). The project will work closely with the Centre and associated partners in aspects of recruitment and engaging and retaining users. This will give community partners and the participants a sense of empowerment as they are actively involved in shaping new apps and systems. They will assist in identifying how the existing smart phone applications that have been developed across a suite of AHRC and EPSRC projects can aid community well-being. A secondary impact objective is for the academic and community teams to identify with residents their understanding of the affordances of the various apps/systems in an inclusive manner such that users are able to put forward new understandings and recommendations for app use in a health and well-being context. We also expect users to help us identify the scope of benefits that could be gained and how future participation can be widened (e.g. which apps work, how they work and what they would require for improvement).

Participants will benefit directly through their involvement in the project which will enable them to undertake activities to increase well-being e.g. collaborative travel and collaborative shopping. It is anticipated that some will learn ITC skills through their engagement with new technologies. It is valuable to not only reach the public, but for the public to consume the ideas through workshops and experimenting with prototypes; the ensuing sense of community, empowerment and achievement may last longer than the project.

The nature of the apps deployed in the project provides users with a tool to bring the community together and reduce potential feelings of isolation through visualising various social networks.

Policy makers and planners:

It is intended that there will be a benefit to policy makers and planners. This follow-on project will explore how individuals might take control of their well-being through technology and collaboration. If communities are empowered to take responsibility for their own well-being it could help relieve pressure on existing public services during a time of public spending cuts. In addition, this project will enable health partners to begin looking forward and better understand which systems bring most benefit to communities. This will pose new research questions and raise opportunities that would extend the established recommendations offered by the NHS (http://apps.nhs.uk) and provide the grounds for a series of technical briefs for software developers to begin exploring. If successful, an outcome of the project would be to use the apps to enable communities to be self-reliant and supplement the public services currently available. The practical and theoretic outputs of this research have the potential to influence future policy and enhance quality of life and health within communities.