Grounding ethical governance: Co-produced, community-based research ethics in qualitative and oral history practice with vulnerable groups

This article examines an embedded model of ethical governance, as practised by the Mind in Bexley Research and Ethics Advisory Board, in overseeing the Unpaid Mental Health Carers in Bexley oral history project. Unlike conventional university-based research ethics committees (RECs), this Board was rooted in the local community, comprising unpaid carers, mental health service users, clinicians, safeguarding leads and qualitative/oral history researchers. Its deep contextual knowledge, direct links to support and safeguarding pathways, and procedural rigour enabled ethical deliberations grounded in lived realities and local service infrastructures. The Board’s design transformed ethics from a pre-approval checkpoint into an active safeguarding partner, exemplified by real-time crisis interventions during fieldwork. Meetings in accessible community venues, the use of plain-language documentation, and a collaborative approach fostered trust and transparency, aligning with the concept of “everyday ethics.” Drawing on this case, the article argues that de-centralised, co-produced ethics governance can enhance contextual sensitivity, strengthen lived experience participation, and mitigate participant risk more effectively than standard institutional models. It concludes by considering implications for research governance frameworks seeking to embed ethical oversight within the relational and place-based contexts in which research unfolds, while recognising that statutory research ethics committees remain essential in biomedical and NHS-facing domains.