The School of Health & Social Care

Method Deck to support older lesbians and gay men

Page published 30 August 2011

Dr Lee–Ann Fenge secures £10,000 funding from the Big Lottery Fund.

Bournemouth University academic, Dr Lee–Ann Fenge, has secured funding to develop a deck of cards to be used as an educational training tool to promote understanding of the needs and experiences of older lesbians and gay men.

The nearly £10,000 Dr Fenge has received from the Big Lottery Fund will support the project, ‘Developing Practice with Older Lesbians and Gay Men – A Method Deck’. The project follows on directly from work accomplished in the ‘Gay and Pleasant Land?’ research project. This study about positioning, ageing and gay life in rural south west England and Wales was carried out at BU over the past three years, led by Dr Kip Jones with Dr Fenge as Community Organiser.

The Method Deck will support practitioners to reflect on their own practice, the agency context and the wider structural issues which influence the experiences of older lesbians and gay men in their local communities. The Deck will include information and activities to support practitioners in promoting good practice with older people from minority sexual groups. It will be used as an educational tool to promote understanding of the needs and experiences of older lesbians and gay men amongst their peers, communities and service providers within UK society.

"A Method Deck consists of a range of colourful playing cards which include exercises, suggestions for activities and brain–storming ideas for practitioners and their clients," said Dr Fenge, Associate Dean Postgraduate Students in the University‘s School of Health and Social Care. "The deck of cards will be designed to inspire and empower local communities, community organisations and health and social care practitioners to review and develop their practice with such groups. This will encourage an inclusive approach to practice, promoting recognition of the diversity within the ageing population."

The content of the Method Deck will be particularly informed by the findings from two recent research projects at Bournemouth University – The Gay and Grey Project (2006) funded by the Big Lottery led by Dr. Fenge and The Gay and Pleasant Land? Project (2009–2012), funded by the UK Research Councils under the umbrella of the New Dynamics of Ageing Programme led by Dr Jones.

Development of the Deck will begin shortly with the input of the project‘s community partners.

Thanks to the Social Innovation Lab for Kent for their earlier advice on their project and the use of their Method Deck in the above photo.