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Using theories of power and place to evaluate community health promotion
Full text link© 2025 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.There is some consensus that better ways of evaluating complex public health programmes are needed as experimental methods are limited in explaining the 'how' and 'why' of change. Methods like 'theory-of-change,' 'realist evaluation,' and 'systems evaluation' try to give a more complete picture of change by looking at the context of the programme. However, when these methods are used to study programmes that aim to reduce health inequalities, they often miss a crucial issue: how power affects people's health and engagement with programmes. This paper addresses that gap by reporting an ethnographic study of a community health promotion programme that was informed by a social theory of power (figurational sociology). When looking at how power dynamics played out in the targeted community, we could see why residents often did not trust the people running the programme, and why local status was so important to them. When programme staff understood these power dynamics, they were better able to connect with residents and help them improve their wellbeing. We argue that combining this way of looking at power with our observational approach gives us a much clearer understanding of how complex public health programmes work and why they succeed or fail in their aims.This research was funded by a Gladstone Bursary from the University of Chester and NHS Western Cheshire. Writing time for this paper was supported by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) School for Public Health Research (SPHR) (Grant Reference Number PD-SPH-2015)
The Eat-Out-to-Help-Out incentive: A trigger for gastrointestinal infections in England, 2020?
Full text link© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press.Our study assessed the link between gastrointestinal (GI) infections in England and the Eat Out to Help Out scheme (EOHO), a government subsidy created to encourage people to eat out during COVID-19 pandemic (03–30 August 2020). We studied national laboratory data between January 2015 and December 2020. We used time series change point analysis to see if there were shifts in reported cases of specific GI infections (Campylobacter spp., Escherichia coli O157, and non-typhoidal Salmonella spp.) associated with the timing of the scheme. Our analysis uniquely applied the Pruned Exact Linear Time method, with generalized linear models to a national dataset of GI infections. This revealed increases in cases closely aligned to the timing of the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, prior to the introduction of the EOHO scheme. Our study showed the scheme had no measurable impact, as there was no significant change on reported cases. Substantial reductions in cases after the first lockdown, followed by an increase as restrictions were phased out, show the wider impact of COVID-19 control measures, for example, public information campaigns aimed at improving hand-hygiene. These findings highlight the complicated interactions between COVID-19 control measures, the public’s behaviour, and the spread of GI infections.The protocol, analysis, and manuscript of this study were the product of a training workshop on operational research for frontline public health practitioners and attended by the first author. The workshop was funded by the National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit (NIHR HPRU) in Gastrointestinal Infections
Fish and coral communities shape elasmobranch reef use in southern Mozambique
Full text link© The Author(s) 2025.The version of record of this article, first published in [Scientific Reports], is available online at Publisher’s website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-32333-yFew studies have explored whether a reef’s bioecological structure affects the presence of elasmobranchs. To examine if the structure of a reef’s fish and coral community influences the likelihood of observing certain elasmobranch species, we deployed a remote underwater video station (RUVS) on four reefs in southern Mozambique. A single RUVS was deployed monthly on each reef for 12 months, resulting in 48 deployments and 140 h of video recordings. Images were extracted from the video recordings to estimate the relative abundance of teleost fish and following each camera deployment a 30 m2 belt transect was completed to measure the percentage cover of corals. Coral and fish abundances were then separated into common functional metrics describing each community. NMDS and PERMANOVA were used to estimate if the calculated metrics and observations of elasmobranchs by RUVS varied between the four reefs. Metrics were then analysed for their influence on the composition of each reef’s elasmobranch community within the NMDS ordination space. The relative abundance of coral species was primarily found to be linked with the depth of the reef surveyed. Relative abundances of coral measured on the shallow reef site were distinct from the other examined reefs in ordination space, with less coral cover and a lower overall abundance of teleost and elasmobranch fish. The richness and abundance of teleost fish species, particularly piscivorous fish, was highest on the northern reef where the elasmobranch community was dominated by several species of reef shark. The southern reef also had a distinct richness and abundance of teleost fish species, with a heightened abundance of herbivorous and cleaner fish, and the observed elasmobranch community was mostly comprised of Mobula rays and guitarfish. Our findings suggest that fish and coral communities can significantly differ between reefs with similar abiotic conditions in a relatively small region, and that this can lead to spatially heterogenous patterns of reef use by elasmobranchs. This may suggest that including the protection of reefs with different biological characteristics within local conservation strategies may promote rare and vulnerable regional elasmobranch species ranging from stingrays, guitarfishes, reef sharks, and pelagic rays.unfundedAAM removed and archived and VoR uploaded to CR 21/01/202
Before the bloom: How pre-winter conditions influence jellyfish production
Full text link© 2025 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.Link to dataset: https://chesterrep.openrepository.com/handle/10034/629885Jellyfish are being increasingly targeted by fisheries, but their complex life cycles make it difficult to predict stock availability. The seasonal recruitment of juvenile jellyfish (ephyrae) is regulated by the reproductive output of the benthic polyp life stage. Within temperate environments, polyps typically undergo strobilation and produce ephyrae in spring. While previous works have documented how winter conditions can influence strobilation success, the potential role of pre-winter environmental conditions on ephyra production remains unknown. This research investigated a well-studied jellyfish species of bioresource interest (Aurelia aurita) in a multi-phase experiment designed to a) quantify the effects of temperature and food availability on polyp development, and b) determine how the environmental conditions in which polyps were reared influence ephyra production and size following a controlled winter simulation. The results demonstrated that warmer pre-winter conditions not only enhanced initial somatic growth rates and bud production, but also increased the likelihood of mature polyps strobilating after temperatures had been reduced. Although polyps grew larger and subsequently produced more ephyrae when pre-winter food availability was increased, the likelihood of strobilation and total ephyra production of polyp populations was unaffected by previous feeding regimes. There was also no relationship between the diameter of parent polyps prior to winter simulation and the mean diameter of their ephyra progeny. Warmer pre-winter conditions could promote strobilation by increasing development rates or strengthening the environmental stimulus when temperatures decrease. These results demonstrate the potential value of considering pre-winter temperature when forecasting the recruitment of jellyfish stocks during summer.DF was financially supported by a Sustainable Futures studentship by the University of Chester with matched funding from Jellagen Ltd (grant reference: BIO20/08)
Evaluation of a novel multi-component anxiety management programme for people with intellectual disability: A mixed methods quasi-experimental feasibility study
Full text linkThis document is the Accepted Manuscript version of a published work that appeared in final form in [Journal of Intellectual Disabilities]. To access the final edited and published work see http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/17446295261417713Background: This study aimed to evaluate a multi-component anxiety management programme for individuals with intellectual disability, focusing on its feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness in supporting development of self-management skills and reducing anxiety.
Design: A mixed methods quasi-experimental design was used, with participants recruited and allocated to either the anxiety intervention or treatment as usual group (TAU). Participants' anxiety symptoms and quality of life were measured at baseline, midpoint and 20 week follow up. Qualitative feedback was collected through interviews with participants and clinicians.
Results: High engagement levels demonstrated intervention acceptability, with strong retention rates highlighting feasibility. Participants in the intervention group reported improvements in self-management skills with quantitative data suggesting small reductions in anxiety symptoms compared to TAU.
Conclusion: The findings provide promising preliminary evidence for the interventions feasibility, acceptability and its potential to reduce anxiety symptoms. However, its potential value in supporting anxiety self-management remains to be fully tested.This project is funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) under its Research for Patient Benefit (RfPB) Programme (Grant Reference Number NIHR204370)
Safeguarding against abuse in religious contexts: Challenges and potential in the relationship between statutory services and Faith-Based Organizations
No full textThe version of record of this article, first published in [Pastoral Psychology], is available online at Publisher’s website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11089-025-01299-zFaith-Based Organizations (FBOs) are integral to community social structures, providing services that often extend beyond spiritual guidance. Due to their longstanding presence and trust within communities, FBOs are uniquely positioned to contribute to safeguarding efforts against abuse. Despite their potential, research indicates that there is a degree of ineffective collaboration between FBOs and statutory services (SSs) particularly in the context of safeguarding vulnerable individuals. Established literature suggests that many FBO safeguarding leads tend to be unaware of broader safeguarding policies and how to discuss concerns with SSs. The present study therefore explores the relationship between FBOs and SSs, aiming to identify factors that facilitate or hinder effective collaboration.
Through an online open-ended questionnaire, data were gathered from 89 participants, including safeguarding leads in FBOs and professionals from SSs. Thematic analysis revealed four key themes: understanding and supporting spirituality, safeguarding awareness and challenges, communication and collaboration barriers, and suggestions for improved partnership. Helpfulness and understanding of spirituality by SSs led to positive experiences. Conversely, negative experiences stemmed from a lack of understanding of FBOs' safeguarding roles, poor information sharing, and complex SSs processes. Participants suggested joint training and increased open communication to improve collaboration. The findings emphasize the need for context-specific training and respectful inter-organizational (or inter-agency) working to foster better relationships between FBOs and SSs. Enhancing these partnerships is crucial for effective safeguarding and protection of vulnerable individuals within faith communities. Future research could delve into these suggestions in more depth and further explore the perspectives of SSs to provide a more comprehensive understanding of these relationships.Safeguarding in religious settings: challenges and potential in relationships between statutory and religious organisations | Funder: Thirtyone:eight (formerly CCPAS)AAM removed and archived and VoR uploaded to ChesterRep 23/02/202
The Eighteenth Century Today: Literature and Media from Beauty and the Beast to Bridgerton
No full textOstensibly a prequel to Robert Louis Stevenson’s 1883 novel Treasure Island, Starz TV series Black Sails (2014-17) imagines a fleeting moment of possibility for anti-slavery and queer revolution in the Golden Age of Piracy. In the final episode, this possibility is extinguished by Long John Silver betraying the pirate and Maroon alliance, and Atlantic history veers back to its grim course of imperial conquest.
Srividhya Swaminathan argues that Black Sails offers a “pastiche of a period in history that still inflects contemporary understanding of empire”. Black Sails’ pastiche reimagines pirates as a unique historical community in terms that also speak critically to contemporary neoliberal discourses of disability, which designate irreparably disabled people as a parasitic, dependent class distinct from the supposed norm of productive, independent adults. In the same year Black Sails appeared, David T. Mitchell explained that “devalued populations” are consigned to “zones of expendability”, marked out “for death (letting die) on behalf of sustaining other, more valued populations in lives of surfeit comfort”. By contrast, Black Sails’ creative engagement with histories of Golden-Age piracy suggests a radically different model: a crew that shares labour and profit as a composite body of cooperative “hands”, refusing to separate maimed from whole, transforms the meaning of dependency and disability itself.UnfundedPermission required from the publisher to archive the AAM. Permission granted 20/01/2026. AAM uploaded to CR 20/01/2026
Demographics and five-factor personality predict alcohol risk and motives in a sample of women from Beijing
Full text linkAlcohol poses a significant public health challenge worldwide, with China among the highest in production and consumption. However, little is known about Chinese women's alcohol related risks and motivations. This study aimed to fill a significant gap in understanding alcohol use within this underrepresented group, as female drinking patterns are evolving amid rapid socio-economic changes. A cross-sectional exploratory survey examined the links between demographic characteristics and Five-Factor Personality dimensions with alcohol risk and drinking motives among 673 women in Beijing. Findings showed that younger, more educated, single/divorced women reported higher, although modest, AUDIT scores and generally stronger drinking motives. Among personality traits, openness was a strong, consistent predictor, positively linked with AUDIT scores and social, coping, and enhancement motives. Extraversion positively predicted AUDIT scores and social, coping, and conformity motives, while neuroticism predicted coping and conformity motives. Lower conscientiousness predicted higher AUDIT scores, and social and enhancement motives. Agreeableness showed a mixed pattern, negatively predicting AUDIT scores and coping motives but positively predicting social motives. Findings indicate an interplay of demographic and personality factors in predicting alcohol risk and motives among Chinese women and highlight vulnerable subgroups, providing a basis for targeted interventions and research in this understudied population
A drone photographic and photogrammetric portrait of Offa’s Dyke
Full text linkThis preliminary article applies drone photograph and photogrammetry visualisations to four significant sections of
Offa’s Dyke to provide fresh insights into specific features of the monument. Also demonstrated is the role of drones as
a means to record the present state of features for future reference, and as a tool for the discovery of subtle features not
previously recorded. The four case studies chosen for this article are part of a drone survey that covers an effectively
continuous 16km ribbon of the Dyke plus the sections of Hergest Corner and Rushock Hill. Together with the complete
set of Offa’s Dyke drone photography undertaken, they establish a platform for future work.unfunde
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