Frome Medical Practice and the Health Connections team have a long history of focusing on the importance of connection, of people feeling connected to each other and to the communities they live within. Initially funded with support from Frome Town Council, the Health Connections team have offered Community Connector training for many years and, as a result over 1,850 people from Frome and across Mendip have received this training.

If you have trained as a Community Connector, then Lucy, who is a fourth year student at the University of Edinburgh, needs your help. The Practice is reaching out to the local community on her behalf in the hope it can encourage people to share their experiences of being a Community Connector.

When asked about her research Lucy said, "I'm conducting my dissertation research into the role of the Community Connector. I am looking into the motivations and experiences of trained Community Connectors who are living in the community within Frome and the Mendip area. I am really excited to get started on collecting the data for my project and need your help!"

"If you are a Community Connector living in Frome or the Mendip area and are willing to participate in a short survey, I would be extremely grateful for your support. The online survey will take no longer than 10 minutes to complete. Additionally, I would like to hold a focus group where we can have a more in-depth discussion of your experience as a Community Connector. This would be held here in Frome in early December and would be scheduled around your availability."

You can complete Lucy's short online survey using this link. If you'd like to take part in her focus group, please contact Lucy via her email address s1960843@ed.ac.uk 

If you want to know more about the work the Health Connections team do at Frome Medical Practice and what being a Community Connector involves, you can find out more on their website. Free Community Connector training sessions take place in-person monthly, last around an hour and are open to everyone.  Click here to find out more.