Count me in census for Mental Health Act Commission
The 2006 Count Me In Census aimed to assess the experience of Black and Minority Ethnic Service Users using acute in-patient mental health facilities including forensic services. This project involved co-coordinating the delivery of over 400 structured interviews in over 40 sites across England. The interviewers were all service users themselves who had been specially selected and trained by Ferns Associates.

This was a complex and high value national project which pioneered a new way of conducting service audits whilst ensuring the highest standards of research design and data capture. It was the first time that a complete service evaluation for the Mental Health Act Commission was undertaken by mental health service users.

A Medium Secure Forensic Service in the Midlands
We conducted the first service-user-led audit of service quality in a medium secure psychiatric unit. This involved engaging with Black and Minority Ethnic service users, interviewing a sample of staff, and conducting over 50 one-to-one interviews with BME service users. A detailed analytical report was produced to enable the forensic unit to improve its services.

Community Support Network evaluation
The aim of this project was to evaluate a Voluntary Advocacy service for people with Mental Health Problems. The evaluation covered the initial training of the volunteers, the policies and practices of the service and the experiences of service users and Volunteers. Qualitative and quantitative data was gathered via questionnaires, focus groups and interviews.

This project involved working with a diverse range of stakeholders and condensing a great deal of qualitative data into relevant, insightful analysis designed to identify impact of the service as well as opportunities for further development

Research into the reasons for Black children coming into Local Authority ‘looked-after’ system in Liverpool
This research study looked at a large sample Black children who were in the looked-after system of analysed the reasons for family breakdown and the pathway of children in local authority care. There was a focus on identifying preventative work and service development around the reasons for family breakdown. An extensive report was produced with recommendations for service provision.

A national research project for the Department of Health on the impact of Community Care legislation on BME communities
This was an extensive project with 24 local authorities involving visits, focus groups and interviews with statutory sector senior managers, staff, service users and BME voluntary sector organisations. Draft guidance was produced for good practice in creating community care services for BME people, later published by the Commission for Racial Equality.