Take part in research

Sometimes we are asked to share research opportunities with families. Sometimes we seek input from bereaved families, and sometimes from new and expectant parents or carers. Your input helps us work with researchers to keep babies safe, and keep grieving families supported.

A photo of a collection of images on a wall. It is family photos, predominantly babies.

Projects that families can take part in

We only promote research studies to families if we believe they are relevant to, or closely associated with, our work. Whilst we do ask for proof of ethical approval, we are not involved in running these studies and they may not be funded by The Lullaby Trust, so any questions you have should be directed to the study contacts below.

Projects we are funding

Uncovering hidden inequality: developing new ways of doing death administration

The University of Manchester are conducting a study in collaboration with the National Bereavement Service which aims to explore how people experience death administration in the UK context, with a focus on hidden inequalities and how the process can be improved.

They are currently recruiting participants to take part in two surveys, one with those who are bereaved and one with professionals who are involved in death administration as part of their role. They want to hear from a wide range of people from different backgrounds and experience of different kinds of death administration, including professionals and bereaved families who have experienced sudden and unexpected death.

Contact Sophie Atherton

The ChildBone Study

The ChildBone Study, based at The University of Sheffield, in collaboration with Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust, is working to revolutionise how children’s bones are studied.

The ChildBone study is trying to understand more about how children’s bones grow and how they might be affected by things like low vitamin D or other health conditions. Sometimes, these changes in bone strength and property aren’t visible on X-rays, so researchers need to look more closely at the bone tissue itself. For this study, the team will take two small samples from the ribs. Each sample would be about 3 to 4 centimetres long, and they would be used for mechanical testing to understand the material properties of the rib bones. The aim is to test the bone’s strength and structure, which could help us understand how children’s bones respond to different conditions, with different vitamin D levels. They will also build a database of different types of children’s bones. These virtual bones (or digital twins) will be used to predict fracture and study the effect of material properties on the strength of bone virtually (without actually breaking them). This knowledge could help improve care for other children in the future.

Families will be recruited for this study exclusively through coronial cases referred to the Sheffield Children’s Hospital, however if you are interested in supporting this project as part of Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE), please contact Dr Xinshan Li on [email protected].

Contact Dr Xinshan Li