LamQ+ Project Global Diversities and Inequalities Research Centre

LamQ+ Project – Understanding Lambeth’s LGBTQI+ communities in times of Coronavirus: A mixed methods study

Research team

Professor Louise Ryan – Director of the Global Diversities and Inequalities Research Centre, Donna Jones – Head of Social Work, Dr Karyofyllis Zervoulis – Senior Lecturer in Social Psychology, Cinar Aydogan and Anna Jakobczak – Research Assistants.

Our collective voice

This Photovoice Exhibition "Our Collective Voice" represents the experiences of Black, Asian and/or other minoritised LGBTQI+ communities, ensuring that their often under-represented voices have been captured in this study. The exhibition is part of the wider research project LamQ+, consisting of three research approaches: survey, Photovoice workshops and a focus group. The LamQ+ project, conducted between January and July 2021, has been funded by the Transformation Fund, London Metropolitan University and developed in collaboration with Lambeth Council and several local charities (Lambeth Links, Black Thrive, Black Out, and Opening Doors London) who formed the Advisory Group for the whole project.

Photovoice, as a part of the mixed methods study, is a participatory action research approach that uses photography to explore personal experiences, and the photographs are accompanied by narratives that tell the story behind the photograph and add meaning to the image. The tellers of these stories are also the co-researchers of this part of the study. Eight key themes were identified by the co-researchers from the clusters of photographs entitled:

• "Are you sick enough?"
• "Are you white enough?"
• "Collective voice + We Demand..."
• "Cultural Inside/Outside"
• "Our Beauty"
• "Shame"
• "To Be Seen + Visibility/Invisibility"
• "Identity"

The process was collectively developed and owned by the co-researchers ensuring that their stories were expressed their way, centering their words.

Co-researchers were supported in the development of this process by: the Photovoice Research Lead – Donna Jones, Head of Social Work; Professional Photographer – Em Fitzgerald; and Research Assistant – Anna Jakobczak.

Read LamQ+ Final Report, October 2021 (PDF).