Last updated: 5th March 2025
In order to dismantle weight stigma, we need to understand it. What does weight stigma look like? What are the causes? How does it affect people? What can we do about it? The purpose of our research is to answer these questions, so that we can take informed action.
Our research is being led by Stella Aster as part of her PhD research at Leeds Beckett University.
We are currently looking to talk to people in Central Lancashire about their experiences of weight stigma. We’d like to interview people so we can learn more about their experiences. We would also like to work with people to write up their accounts of their experiences, like those we share in our Introduction to weight stigma, and to produce other forms of account and testimony using arts and crafts and creativity.
These interviews and accounts will form the basis of our research data. Each person’s accounts will be anonymised, so that people cannot be identified from what they have told us. With people’s permission, we will publish these anonymous accounts on this website. We want to publish people’s accounts of their experiences in their own words, so that we can raise awareness about weight stigma in healthcare in Central Lancashire, and allow other people to start to understand it too.
Everyone is invited to work with us to analyse the data we collect. This means sharing our reflections on people’s experiences, asking questions about what is happening, and looking for patterns across different accounts.
As we start to get a picture of the causes, forms, and consequences of weight stigma occurring in our home, we will be able to write an initial report on weight stigma in healthcare in Central Lancashire. Our report will be published on this website, and shared with staff in our local NHS and local government.
This is just the first step in our research. Once we have an understanding of how people experience weight stigma, we will be able to develop strategies together to allow us to respond to it. These strategies might include patient self-advocacy tools, training sessions for healthcare professionals, and changes to NHS policies. We cannot guarantee that we will be able to deliver these changes, but we believe we should build relationships between patients and staff in order to try and make things better.
If you would like to participate in our research, please email Stella at endweightstigma@centrallancashire.co.uk for more information.
Our research has ethical approval from Leeds Beckett University. This can be supplied on request.
Interviewees must read the Participant Information Sheet and provide a signed Consent Form prior to their interview. Interviewees may wish to review the interview guide prior to their interview.
Please note: the Participant Information Sheet currently states that you may “self-identify as a higher weight person”, however we understand that this does not apply to everyone, and we would like to talk to everyone about their experiences of weight stigma, regardless of their weight.