Social Care and Society

Social Care and Society is home to a critical mass of researchers and professionals undertaking interdisciplinary research on social care, mental health and long-term care.

SCS has absorbed the Personal Social Services Research Unit (PSSRU@Manchester) research group and will continue to be one of the leading social care research groups in the UK. Our new name reflects a broader set of themes and collaborations in The University of Manchester, nationally and globally.

SCS is directed by Catherine A Robinson, Professor of Social Care Research and Associate Director of the NIHR School for Social Care Research. Dr Paul Clarkson is the Deputy Director of SCS and a senior fellow of the NIHR SSCR. The department brings together expertise across research disciplines and sectors and includes social science, social work, psychiatry, policy analysis, health economics and psychology.

We are interested in the social contexts and socio-economic factors of care, including inequalities. Our overarching aim is to conduct high quality research on social and health care to have translational application by doing the following.

• Sustaining a critical mass of researchers in a dynamic and vibrant research environment.
• Conducting high-quality research to inform social and health care in the UK and internationally.
• Developing interdisciplinary research and methods to address complex questions.
• Strengthening research capacity in the UK and internationally.
• Working with people who use services and policy makers, commissioners, and professionals and managers working in the fields of health and social care.

Our team of researchers have experience in applied social care and health services research including clinical trials, social work, nursing, psychiatry, qualitative analysis, multivariate modelling and local authority data analytics. SCS has a strong foundation and brings together a number of experienced researchers and groups. It will adapt and develop its own distinct style and areas of particular interest and expertise. 
We are a founder member of the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) School for Social Care Research (SSCR). The SSCR commenced in 2009 and is a partnership of research centres at seven universities.

Our research

Our current research programmes are:

• NIHR School for Social Care Research (SSCR) at The University of Manchester
• Effective Home Support in Dementia Care: Components, Impacts and Costs 
• The South Asia Self Harm Initiative (SASHI)
• Dementia Person Aligned Care Team (D-PACT) at The University of Manchester

At SCS, we have developed four themes to our work. These are:
Global Health and Care; Social Care; Mental Health; Long-Term Care

Our cross-cutting theme is Developing Research Capacity in these areas. This we are doing through the development of research staff; by working with local authority and NHS colleagues, including the NIHR infrastructure around participant recruitment for research.

We are also collaborating with organisations, both within the University of Manchester and externally.

Professor Catherine Robinson is:
♦ Social Care Lead, Applied Research Collaboration (ARC) Greater Manchester
♦ Associate Director (Manchester), NIHR School for Social Care Research
♦ Co-Director, Institute of Health Policy and Organisation, University of Manchester
Dr Paul Clarkson is:
♦ Research Champion, NIHR Clinical Research Network Greater Manchester
♦ Member, Digital Futures Health and Care Working Group, University of Manchester
♦ Research Partner, Age Care Technologies (International population studies with ACT Assessment)