These include individuals such as those who are disenfranchised from society, as well as key decision makers in named occupations.

The new department is led by Charlotte Ashall (pictured), who has an array of knowledge and experience which she gained while working for Research Opinions, the recruitment arm and sister company of Acumen Fieldwork.

Subject areas that the team have been asked to tackle include speaking to victims of human trafficking; modern day slavery; Roma or traveller communities; members of the LGBT community; neuro-diverse individuals and women who have faced harassment in the workplace.

The team has already begun to make its mark in the industry and, prior to becoming a formal department, they were named as finalists at the MRS 2021 Operations Awards.   

Talking about the new department, team lead Ashall said: “It’s fantastic to know that the hard work you put into finding participants who are exceptionally difficult to source is being recognised, but that’s not the key motivator within our department.

“The most important thing for us is that we are facilitating some of the hardest, most complex research quotas with an understanding that is at the cutting edge of research; somewhere it can make a difference to individuals, communities and even on a national scale.”