Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to assess the impact of a mental health carers’ research reference group on mental health research in the Heart of England region. Design/methodology/approach: The methodology was a co-produced participatory evaluation, and the research was co-produced by the group. The design involved a literature review of carers’ involvement in UK mental health research, and collection of secondary data (group records) and primary data from researchers, group members, and facilitators. Analysis was initially thematic, then synthesised.
