Co-pro example: VOX Scotland makes it work!
Michelle McBride, Volunteer Engagement Officer at VOX Scotland reflects on making co-production work and embedding these principles in their work. Voices of Experience (VOX) is Scotland’s mental health collective advocacy charity run by and for its members.
I enjoyed the most recent Co-Production Ideas Clinic. It was inspiring to engage with a wide range of other practitioners with a wealth of skills and experience, sharing good practice and asking the important questions on how we can do things better in co-production. I have reflected on the discussions that took place and considered what I have learned directly from our VOX members - you always come away learning new things!
To put it simply: Just ask! Ask the lived experience members, the participants, the individuals who engage in the work you are undertaking. They have the life experience, the skills, and the knowledge of what has worked and what hasn’t worked for them in the past. We reached out to our VOX members and simply asked them: ‘What works? What matters to you?’
VOX members shared their expertise to develop a ‘back to basics’ co-production resource. Through the process of connecting and collaborating, members identified key themes they felt were important for authentic co-production to take place:
Relationships
Power
Communication
Language
During this process, it was great to have the support from our friends at Scottish Co-production Network. You recognise that you can’t do it in isolation, you need that collaborative working. The more connected we are with our members and our stakeholders then the better for social change to take place.
Get Creative!
At VOX we looked at creative ways of co-producing with our members including zine-making, collage-making, empathy mapping, and storytelling through photography. Feedback from members has been positive. They have felt empowered and connected in exploring creative ways of having their voices heard. Being creative together has positive benefits for overall mental health and wellbeing. It can offer a sense of purpose, provide a chance to learn new skills, and increase their happiness in being part of a team.
We also asked our members what is vital in creating a safe space for co-production to take place. By ‘getting this right’ we will create an atmosphere where people can communicate effectively, participate safely, and be themselves without fear.
Find out more about creating safe spaces for co-production (PDF)
VOX has also been involved in other examples of making co-production work in practice:
Lived Experience Working Group, Scottish Mental Illness Stigma Study (SMISS)
VOX members were part of a Lived Experience Working Group who fed into the SMISS research process, which highlighted the severity of stigma and discrimination faced by people with experience of severe and enduring mental illness in Scotland. They openly shared their experiences of stigma and discrimination, ensuring that the study involved voices of lived experience. SMISS commented that ‘Without their input, this research would not have been as meaningful as it is.’
To find out more about this project (PDF
With Us, For Us Lived Experience Project Group
VOX Scotland and Scottish Recovery Network (SRN) were commissioned by Health Improvement Scotland to support the work of the Personality Disorder Improvement Programme by engaging with people with lived experience to inform the final programme recommendations. There were 4 key phases of the programme of engagement:
Reach Out
Engagement
Co-design
Reporting
A Lived Experience Project Group developed a suite of co-produced resources which aim to address some of the issues around stigma and discrimination as well as provide support for services to develop best practice.
The group reflected that had ‘felt truly listened to and valued throughout the project’ and added that ‘being part of the of the group [has] been validating, as what [we] have shared has been acted on.’
This unique and creative project was genuine and authentic collaboration and co-production in practice!
Involve everyone from the start
Have a structure or framework to work to and the right resources available
Value and reward individuals who take part in the process (explore remuneration opportunities if appropriate)
Encourage and foster peer support to support the ongoing engagement, taking an ‘If they can do it, so can I’ approach
Evaluate and celebrate the process and consider what happens next
Have fun and learn along the way!
Remember in co-production we can’t always get it right, but we give it a go and we can always learn, change, and develop as we go along.
Meaningful lived experience is at the heart of successful co-production, as practitioners and facilitators we cannot do it by ourselves, it needs a team!