The 'Leading Research Group' course ran between March and July 2007. It formed one element of the Hertfordshire Participation Pilot and was funded largely by Hertfordshire Local Authority’s Children Schools and Families Participation Team. This Pilot was a collaborative project between Save the Children UK, Hertfordshire CSF Participation Team, the HCD Student Partnership, one primary and one secondary school, a special school for students with severe, profound and multiple learning difficulties and an educational support centre*  (ESC) for young people who have been excluded from school. It aimed to ensure that children and young people at the participating schools in disadvantaged areas were involved in decision-making and evaluating education as well as developing the skills of teachers and students to lead and undertake research that informed these decisions.