In this blog series, we celebrate the winners and highly commended recipients of the Faculty’s ‘Outstanding Contribution to PPIE’ awards. These awards showcase inspirational efforts and exceptional commitment to PPIE that have made a positive difference to our community and highlight the amazing events, activities, people and groups from across the Faculty.   

Our latest blog in this series features the Alternative Cervical Screening (ACES) Diversity project, which was highly commended in the Group category at the 2025 PPIE Awards. This project explored barriers to cervical screening among underrepresented communities and sought innovative solutions to improve access and uptake.  

Launched in 2021, the ACES Diversity Project set out to explore the factors preventing certain groups from attending cervical screening, an important procedure for detecting cervical cancer, of which nearly all cases (99.8%) are caused by the human papilloma virus (HPV). By investigating alternative cervical screening methods, such as self-sampling through vaginal swabs and urine tests, the ACES Diversity Project aimed to reduce health inequalities and increase participation among ethnically diverse groups. 

The first phase of the project, led by Dr Jiexin Cao and Dr Jennifer Davies, involved close collaboration with two community partners: CanSurvive (supporting African and Caribbean communities) and Women’s Chai (supporting South Asian communities). Together, they developed a cross-sectional survey to assess and attitudes toward self-sampling procedures. 

The survey was translated into six languages and disseminated both online and in person at community centres. Among the 430 responses that were collected, the majority confirmed that having the option of self-sampling would increase screening uptake in their communities and among ethnically diverse populations.  

The second part of the project was led by Dr Lorna McWillliams and Sophie Whitley. Seven in-person and one online focus groups were conducted, involving 48 women from diverse ethnic backgrounds. Amidst conversations exploring perceived barriers to self-sampling, three major themes emerged: 

• Cultural considerations (modesty, marital status, hygiene, stigma). 
• Desire for comfort and control (privacy, reduced pain, autonomy). 
• Confidence in testing (ease of use, accuracy concerns, need for choice). 

Overall, responses were positive, and most participants found urine testing to be highly acceptable. However, they also emphasised the importance of choice in sampling and continued awareness campaigns.  

The ACES Diversity Project led to longer-lasting trusted relationships between researchers and community groups. Some community members even returned to join PPIE panels for subsequent projects, ACES At Home and ACES Choice, which aimed to provide people at home with HPV-testing kits. 

Additional information: 

• ACES Diversity Project Instagram 
• ACES Diversity Project X/Twitter 
• ACES Diversity Project publication: Acceptability of Self‐Sampling for Cervical Screening in Ethnically Diverse Groups in Northwest England: A Focus Group Study 
• ACES At Home Study 
• ACES Choice Study 

To find out more about PPIE: watch our short film, sign up to the monthly Public Engagement Digest, visit the PPIE blog, or contact srbmh@manchester.ac.uk.       

To read more about other PPIE Award winners visit here. 

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