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Audience insight and impact evaluation.
The UK’s leading specialists in cultural audience research and evaluation.
Combining behavioural psychology, audience insight and robust evaluation methodologies, we generate evidence that satisfies funding requirements while providing practical recommendations for future programming, audience development and organisational strategy.
Trusted to deliver research and evaluation for the UK’s largest cultural funding bodies, local authorities, cultural organisations and community initiatives, helping demonstrate public value while shaping the future of cultural participation.
Authors of the UK Cultural Strategy Review 2026 and creators of Sandbox™, the Strategic Maturity Index™ and the Five Pillars of Modern Cultural Strategy™.
UNDERSTANDING
Exploring the behaviours, motivations and experiences that influence cultural participation.
EVIDENCE
Generating robust research and evaluation that demonstrates meaningful social, cultural and economic impact.
DECISIONS
Transforming insight into practical recommendations that strengthen programmes, audiences and organisational strategy.
Winners of the Arts & Culture Social Enterprise Award 2025.
Delivering insight, impact and evidence-led evaluation.
We undertake audience research, project evaluation and impact measurement for arts, culture and heritage organisations. Whether supporting Arts Council England and National Lottery Heritage Fund projects, organisational learning or future planning, our work combines robust evidence with practical insight to help organisations understand participation, evaluate impact and shape what happens next.
Informing cultural engagement, placemaking and inclusivity decisions across the UK.
In 2025 our Sandbox toolkit was trusted by:
– 143 Arts Council England funded organisations
– 31 National Lottery Heritage Fund projects
– 6 UK local authorities and 4 international partners
Years researching participation and cultural engagement
Funding secured through our research and evaluation evidence
Audience participants engaged through research and consultation since 2024
Research, evaluation and engagement projects delivered
SECTOR INFLUENCE
Research informing national cultural policy
Our work extends beyond individual commissions.
Alongside research and evaluation projects, we undertake nationally-significant independent research into cultural participation, audience engagement and place-based cultural strategy.
This work has informed national reviews, local authority decision-making and the development of proprietary frameworks that now support audience research, evaluation and cultural strategy projects across the UK.
The methodologies and approaches developed through this work continue to shape how participation, impact and cultural engagement are understood, evaluated and applied across the sector.
Findings from our independent research programme have informed the development of Sandbox™, the Audience Journey™, the Strategic Maturity Index™ and the Five Pillars of Modern Cultural StrategyTM.
why cultural research often falls short
Most research tells you what happened. We explain why.
Many cultural research projects successfully record attendance, participation and audience satisfaction. While these measures are important, they rarely explain why people engaged, what prevented others from taking part or what created lasting value.
Behavioural insight provides the missing context that transforms data into understanding.
We believe evaluation’s greatest value lies in generating learning throughout delivery and providing evidence that improves future practice.
Data ⇢ Insight
Attendance figures tell us who came. Research helps explain why.
Report ⇢ Learn
Evaluation should generate insight that informs future decisions.
Metrics ⇢ Impact
Impact requires interpretation, reflection and evidence.
OUR APPROACH
An integrated evidence framework
Our work is underpinned by an integrated evidence ecosystem developed through more than twenty years of research, evaluation and cultural practice. Each framework contributes a different perspective, but together they create a richer understanding of participation, impact and decision-making than any one approach could achieve.
Each framework strengthens the others. Together they provide a level of evidence, context and practical application that would be difficult to achieve through a single methodology alone.
Coordinating multiple ways of knowing
No single research method can fully explain cultural participation. By combining immersive fieldwork, participatory inquiry, behavioural insight and contextual analysis, we build a more complete understanding of people, places and programmes.
Bespoke research
We go beyond standardised surveys to immerse ourselves in your organisation, audiences and communities to understand what really matters.
OUR APPROACH
We use observational methods, participatory dialogues and “deep hanging out” to uncover the motivations, barriers and experiences behind cultural engagement. This allows us to reveal the layers of context that numbers alone can’t show.
National and regional context
We combine bespoke research with regional and national datasets to ensure findings are locally meaningful and strategically robust.
OUR APPROACH
We use trusted data sources including Local Insights, Mosaic, Audience Finder, Audience Spectrum, Arts Council England’s Active Lives survey and ONS data to build a clear picture of place, people and participation.
inside a disconnected bodies project
See how we work in practice
Before requesting a proposal, we encourage organisations to review our approach and methodology. This helps you decide whether our way of working aligns with your project goals before either party invests time in a bespoke proposal.
How can we support your project?
Applying research, evaluation and insight
Our integrated frameworks underpin every project we deliver. Whether you’re seeking to better understand your audiences, demonstrate impact or inform future strategy, we combine behavioural insight with robust research and evaluation to deliver evidence you can act upon.
Audience research and insight
Participation, motivations, barriers & audience behaviour.
IDEAL FOR
Organisations seeking audience understanding and strong engagement.
WHATS INCLUDED
- Audience research and segmentation
- Community consultation and engagement
- Behavioural insight and motivation mapping
- Participation barriers and opportunity analysis
- Stakeholder engagement and interviews
Informed by Sandbox™ and Audience Journey™
Evaluation and impact measurement
Demonstrating outcomes, public value and organisational impact.
IDEAL FOR
Projects that need to prove impact and report to funding bodies.
WHATS INCLUDED
- Evaluation design and methodology
- Surveys, interviews and focus groups
- Impact assessment and outcome measurement
- Stakeholder engagement and case studies
- Reporting for funding bodies and stakeholders
Informed by Audience Journey™ and Strategic Maturity Index™
Strategy, learning and organisational development
Action, investment and future planning.
IDEAL FOR
Organisations looking to improve, plan ahead and build capacity.
WHATS INCLUDED
- Strategic recommendations
- Organisational learning and workshops
- Audience development and growth planning
- Business case and funding evidence
- Cultural strategy and policy support
Informed by Strategic Maturity Index™, Five Pillars™ and Sandbox™
Helping organisations meet funding requirements and demonstrate impact
Audience research
National Maritime Museum, London
Increasing access through community engagement and audience insight.
Community engagement research fed into the content and design of the landmark ‘Our Connection to Water’ exhibition, supporting the museum to reach and reflect the diversity of its local communities.
100,000+
visitors to the exhibition
18%
increase in visitors from diverse communities
Strategy and evaluation
The Culture Trust, Luton
Evidence-led evaluation across a multi-site cultural portfolio.
Delivered evaluation across four heritage and cultural sites, synthesising consultation, stakeholder engagement and audience data to inform strategy and improve impact.
4
cultural sites evaluated
250+
stakeholders engaged
Participation and engagement
Pedestrian Arts, Leicester
Reviving local stories and inspiring new generations.
Supporting the delivery of Tell Tall Tales, a National Lottery Heritage Fund project uncovering and retelling local folklore through creative outputs and community activity.
1,200+
participants
8
school and library partners
FREE CONsultation
Book a 30-minute
consultation
A strategic conversation about your project, challenge or opportunity.
A strategic conversation
Speak directly with Disconnected Bodies Founder Pablo Colella about your project, challenge or opportunity.
No obligation, just focused, practical advice informed by two decades of research and practice in audience behaviour, evaluation and cultural strategy.
What happens next?
Choose a convenient time and we’ll explore your project, discuss possible approaches and answer any questions about our research, evaluation or strategic planning services.
TELEPHONE
020 3633 7617
PUBLICATIONS
Explore our research, frameworks and practical guides.
Evidence, ideas and tools to help you understand participation, strengthen engagement and shape more inclusive practice.
FRAMEWORK
People Make Meaning
Ethical and useful evaluation for cultural organisations.
METHODOLOGY
Prove it!
Methodologies built from evidence and case studies of socially engaged practice.
PRACTICAL GUIDE
No Voice Left Behind
A guide to participatory practice that centres community and voice
FRAMEWORK
People, Place, Possibility
Ethical and useful evaluation for cultural organisations.
Trusted by the cultural sector
Supporting cultural engagement across 200+ organisations, projects and partners
We build long-term partnerships grounded in trust, insight and shared ambition; working with organisations across the UK and internationally to deliver meaningful cultural impact and value.
2025 HIGHLIGHTS
