Focus groups: how we can provide the most effective support to Black-led grassroots organisations

Wellcome is a global charitable foundation registered in England (no.210183) whose mission is to support science to solve the urgent health challenges facing everyone. We fund curiosity-driven research with a £38.2 billion investment portfolio. We give researchers the time and resources they need to make breakthroughs.

We know that Black people are underrepresented in research positions, and in our funding portfolio. This inequitable disparity is a longstanding problem that requires systemic attention. However, addressing this problem is often left to individual Black researchers, rather than the systems and structures they work within. In response, many create grassroots organisations to aid the careers of other Black researchers. Often these groups/organisations receive little institutional or financial support, meaning that the pathway to sustainability is difficult.  

Wellcome is committed to dismantling the structural barriers limiting the careers of Black researchers. We also recognise the crucial role Black-led grassroots organisations play in advancing equity and providing support for Black researchers. Wellcome wants to do more to support these organisations, but to do this well and understand how we can design mutually beneficial support, we must hear from the individuals who are already doing this work.  

Therefore, we are establishing a series of externally facilitated, paid online focus groups to hear from leaders of these vital, Black-led grassroots organisations.  

The focus groups are being conducted by external facilitators from Hello Brave and will be analysed by members of the Research Environment team at Wellcome.  

Each focus group will include approximately six people and last up to two hours. All focus group participants will be paid £200. 

We define Black-led grassroots organisations as groups set up by Black people that support the careers of Black researchers. They can be described as groups, networks, or organisations.  

We want to hear from the leadership of Black-led groups, networks and organisations which are:  

• informal or formal 
• active or inactive 
• new or well-established  
• small, medium, or large 
• independent or embedded within universities or organisations 
• from specific disciplines or are discipline agnostic 
• based in the UK or operate in similar ‘Global North’ settings where White people are the majority, such as Europe or North America.  

We are currently inviting the leaders of Black-led organisations that support the careers of Black researchers to take part in focus groups. We are interested in talking to:  

• Those who self-identify as being from a Black heritage background, including a mixed heritage background. For example, Black African, Black Caribbean or other Black backgrounds. 

and

• Those who work in the leadership of a grassroots organisation which support the careers of Black researchers. 

Focus groups will be held online (Zoom) for 2 hours with a maximum of six attendees and conducted by an external organisation called Hello Brave on behalf of Wellcome. Conversations will be recorded, transcribed and anonymised by Hello Brave. Wellcome staff will not attend any focus groups and will only receive anonymised transcripts. However, staff will know who has attended each focus group. 

We will ask for your consent to record the session in the study enrollment form, and at the start of the focus group. Unfortunately, people who do not consent to the session being recorded will not be able to participate in the focus groups.  

Focus group conversations will focus on either individual organisations or the collective of grassroots organisations. We have now run all the individual organisation focus groups and are actively recruiting for the collective conversations. The collective conversations will be split into two types of focus groups: one examining specific support mechanisms and the other exploring how Wellcome can support the overall collective vision of success for grassroots organisations. You will be given the choice of the type of conversation you would like to attend.

You will be paid £200 for your time – this payment will be administered by Wellcome after the focus group has taken place. 

Please note that all data will be reported anonymously, and we will not report your answers internally at Wellcome or externally in any way that would allow you to be identified. 

Participating in the focus groups will not affect any current or future dealings with, or funding from, Wellcome. 

If you would like to be involved in this project, we will contact you in the following ways: 

• If you fill out the enrolment form, we will contact you to let you know if you have been selected to take part, what date we can offer you and coordinate your attendance of these focus groups.  
• If you sign up to a focus group, we will share your contact details with the external facilitators, Hello Brave. 
• Your email address will only be used to contact you about this project, including key project updates. We will not use your email address for any other reasons.  

Taking part in this project is voluntary. If at any point you feel uncomfortable or want to end your participation in the project, you are free to do so with no consequences. 

If you decide prior to taking part in a focus group that you no longer wish to participate, please let us know so that we can offer your space to someone on our waiting list. You are free not to answer any particular questions you are asked without giving a reason. 

If you decide to withdraw your consent after taking part in a focus group, you do not need to return any fee or payment in kind that you’ve already received or are due to receive as a result of participating in this project. If you decide before taking part in a focus group that you no longer want to participate, you will not receive the payment. 

If you would like to opt out of us storing your details at any time, please email researchenvironment@wellcome.org. 
 
Wellcome Trust is committed to storing personal data safely and securely.  For information about how we handle your data, please read our policy notice. 
 
If you have any questions about the focus groups, please email researchenvironment@wellcome.org.