Public involvement and engagement is fundamental to research. Yet approaches that entail greater power sharing between academics, the public and practitioners are often criticised for tokenism, rather than truly embracing the benefits of lay expertise. The event showcases two Lancaster led projects researching the health inequalities impact of resident-led decision making in neighbourhood settings. The event will focus on different methods adopted in the projects to actively involve the public. This includes using the arts (arts based storytelling and drama) as well as participatory research techniques as a vehicle for co-producing data analysis and outputs. Public representatives from both projects will co-design and deliver the workshop.