Survivors Voices Researcher Community

This is a welcoming and supportive space for people with lived experience of abuse who are involved in, interested in, or considering research. Here we can share experiences, support one another and together develop better, more Survivor-sensitive ways of working.

Survivors Voices Linking Service

Our Linking Service connects ethical, trauma-informed research projects with Survivors’ Voices’ community of survivors and wider network, helping researchers engage survivors safely, meaningfully & inclusively.

Become A Research Participant

Here you can find a list of research studies that are looking for Survivor participants; this might be to be interviewed, to co-produce research or to sit on a lived experience advisory group (LEAG). Take a look and see what studies are open at the moment.

All studies on this list have been vetted by Survivors Voices.

A collaboration between Survivors Voices and independent researcher Jo Lomani this report draws together contributions from 32 adult Survivors of CSA & sexual violence.

A social justice Call for Action, New Ways outlines the needs and experiences of Survivors in relation to the current conceptualisation and provision of mental health diagnosis and care and proposes less harmful approaches to future service provision for our population.

A Gospel framework for The Church of England’s on-going
conversation with survivors of church-related abuse by David and Sue Atkinson, with input from Survivors Voices members.

T.R.A.U.M.A. builds on our earlier research in Safe, Seen, Supported which found that a better understanding of abuse – how to recognise it, talk about it, and respond to it – is vital.

In T.R.A.U.M.A. we formed an Arts Collective to safely explore these issues. Together, we created an arts-based card deck and hosted an exhibition aimed at building awareness, facilitating conversations around abuse, and animating public debate.

T.R.A.U.M.A. was led by an interdisciplinary Survivor-only team, in partnership with Angie Sweeney (Service User Research Enterprise (SURE) and Laura Fischer (Traumascapes), with funding from VAMHN.

1 in 5 children experiences at least one form of abuse (physical, sexual, emotional, neglect, exposure to domestic abuse) before the age of 16. Rarely does this abuse come to the attention of the authorities. As a result, for many children and young people COVID-19 meant being trapped in abusive households.

The Safe Seen Supported project was a survivor-led initiative to address this concern. We asked people who know best how to reach and help children and young people experiencing abuse in their households: adult survivors who were once these children and practitioners who support survivors. Together, we identified key considerations and actions to take both during the pandemic and beyond.

We published a Report with guidance for practitioners and communities and an Infographic for young people and families, with a series of Instagram Posts you can download and share.

Read on here for more information about the research and our podcast with Lancet Psychiatry.

The COVID-19 pandemic magnified risks to children and young people who are at risk of or are experiencing violence and abuse in their home and are ‘off-radar’ – unknown to agencies and services that can help.

We worked with independent survivor researchers, King’s College London, the Violence & Mental Health Network (VAMHN) and McPin Foundation to undertake a rapid research project with adult survivors and professionals, about how to reach and help such children and young people now and in the future.

This report brought the voice of Survivors to the forefront of discussions about improving the church’s safeguarding practice and response to Survivors.

We were pleased to partner with Changemaker Roz Etwaria from our sister organisation Little Ro, in this Survivor-lead research project for the Church of England National Safeguarding Team.

Out of the Shadows was part of a campaign for the provision of consistent and survivor-sensitive information in the media. This research resulted in the development of media guidelines about providing support information when broadcasting programmes that feature abuse and violence.

We were very pleased to work with campaign group 38 Degrees and Nottingham Sexual Violence Support Services to undertake research with Survivors and Survivor organisations.