Inclusive research project, India

Peer Research Training Programme (Global / UK-led)

This 10-month initiative trained people affected by leprosy to become confident peer researchers through a practical, WhatsApp-based course. Participants designed and conducted their own research and presented findings in international forums, strengthening inclusion and equity in research systems.

The “Principles and Methods of Social Research for Peer Researchers” project was a 10-month practical research training programme (February 2025 – December 2025) designed to support people affected by leprosy to become confident peer researchers, led by Gemma Aellah and Caroline Ackley from the Brighton and Sussex Medical School, UK with  The Leprosy Mission Trust India.

Delivered primarily through WhatsApp Communities, the course provided accessible, bite-sized learning and accompaniment, enabling participants to learn research by doing it: collectively developing a research question, planning and conducting a small-scale qualitative study, completing ethics review, analysing findings, and presenting results in international and policy spaces. The programme recruited participants from an existing lived-experience leprosy WhatsApp network and supported them to take on active roles such as interviewing, facilitation and dissemination, with an emphasis on equity and inclusion in research systems that have historically excluded affected communities. Alongside building practical research skills, the project also strengthened peer researchers’ visibility and confidence to engage as informed equals in academic and policy conversations—supporting presentations in global forums such as the International Leprosy Congress. Overall, the project produced a replicable model for lightweight peer research training that can be rolled out again within the leprosy community and adapted for other neglected tropical disease communities