The Right Here Right Now study

The Right Here Right Now (RHRN) pilot study ran for six months from May to October 2015 to better understand how people in Glasgow were responding to rapid social and economic changes brought about by welfare changes and austerity measures. This arose from a growing awareness of the need for more timely information on how changes were affecting people’s lives, to better support policy responses. 

RHRN was a collaborative project involving the Glasgow Centre for Population Health, NHS Health Scotland (now Public Health Scotland), MRC/CSO Social and Public Health Sciences Unit, University of Glasgow, and the Institute of Design Innovation at the Glasgow School of Art. The aim of the study was to establish an efficient means of collecting data on people’s lived experiences on an ongoing basis, and to analyse and disseminate this to decision-makers in as near to real-time as possible. 

A total of 180 participants were recruited, using a combination of random and quota sampling. Each week participants were issued a series of short questions via email, SMS or post. Questions were associated with public health and social issues and came from various sources, including from a panel of key stakeholders representing the Scottish Government, Glasgow City Council, the NHS and third sector organisations, and questions based on topical news stories. The results of these questions were summarised and made available to all stakeholders within two weeks of the question being asked. 

Evaluation of the pilot showed that it was successful in delivering a system that involved participants in answering weekly questions, with analysis and feedback of findings within two weeks. Participants valued having their voices heard and potentially ‘making a difference’ and would be happy to continue answering questions over a longer period of time. Some adaptations were suggested by the panel of key stakeholders to enhance the utility of real-time data.