Research

Insights, evidence and findings from our research work across places, communities and public services.

A black children's school backpack with an air quality monitoring device clipped onto it.

Personal air pollution exposure assessment with schoolchildren in rural Wales

Children in rural areas face distinct air pollution risks that are largely absent from existing research, which tends to focus on urban schools and commutes. This citizen science study measured PM2.5 exposure across home, school, and travel settings for 53 primary school children on Ynys Môn, finding that home environments — particularly those with wood burners or adult smokers — produced the highest and most variable readings. Crucially, the findings show that children's exposure is shaped far more by the behaviour of the adults around them than by their own choices.

Large, temporary, bent wood, architectural structures sit arranged in a rough circular pattern on a grassy clearing next to a pine forest on a sunny day. The structures are constructed with lengths of wood fastened together in a mesh line pattern that forms an arch. They are organically decorated with sail cloths, string, and pieces of paper that have been attached by hand. A group of young children, all wearing green hoodies and with some wearing sun hats are walking out from between the structures holding pieces of paper looking like they’re off on a mission. They are joined by two adults. In the centre-left foreground, 5 adults sit in a circle looking like they’re having a discussion.

Research

Affective Encounters: Reflections from Lle Llais

Lle Llais was designed as both an engagement event and experiment—connecting young people and families with the Public Map Platform project, while also prototyping a new methodology - Affective Encounters. Rooted in arts-based research, the methodology brings together temporary architecture, creative practice, and embodied experience. It asks: what happens when we listen to each other and location not just with our ears, but with our hands, feet, eyes, skin, and breath? In this article, Dr Caitlin Shepherd and Dr Irit Katz share their learnings.