This summer, we were delighted to welcome Saoirse Osborne to conduct research for Turning Tides, exploring how to ensure our female clients feel safe when using our services.

A Sussex local in her final year of a Politics degree at the University of Warwick, Saoirse took the opportunity to access university funding and supervision for an independent research project, and chose to work with Turning Tides. The main draw was her passion for our ethos of co-production in service design, as Saoirse started volunteering with us in 2022 and was familiar with our services. She also runs a university society organising volunteering sessions for students at local homelessness charities, and hopes to work in the homelessness sector after graduating.

Saoirse’s four-month research project involved:
– Art workshops with three of Turning Tides’ female clients across two accommodation services about their experiences
– Focus groups with clients to share feedback on draft versions of the report
– Interviews and surveys with ten Turning Tides staff
– Conversations with staff in other women’s organisations like Women in Prison

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