Coproduction and trauma-informed practice go hand in hand
Tom is an IF member and one of our consultants with lived experience. In this blog, he reflects on how coproduction and trauma-informed practice complement each other.
Co-production and trauma-informed practice have featured heavily in the Changing Futures programme since its inception in 2021. This was deliberate. Implementing lived experience in the production of services, requires an awareness that participating colleagues may have been affected by past and ongoing trauma, and this could compromise their productivity, as well as the quality of service that a particular organisation delivers. Any genuine attempt at co-production can only be successful, if there is a broad understanding of trauma-informed practice and how it can be implemented.
Paradoxically, incorporating a trauma-informed approach into your service delivery, cannot be achieved in a silo or by simply learning through education. Of course, acquiring knowledge in an educational environment is valuable, but it cannot compensate for the lived experience perspective that co-production brings.
Information taught to any individual in the classroom or in a manual is a useful introduction to trauma-informed approaches, but it does not account for the chemistry an individual can bring to a group, or the unique dynamics which are produced by a group, due to its participants. It’s important to get to know each individual in a group, gaining one another’s trust, building a rapport with colleagues, and ultimately understanding how we can extract the best of out of each other (including ourselves), to achieve our common goal. Understanding the application of a trauma-informed approach, can only come through the practice of co-production, in addition to the other methods of teaching and learning.
The greater the self-awareness, as well as an awareness of the people who are in the same co-production bubble as you, should be one of the fundamentals when implementing a trauma-informed approach. This same co-productive environment should allow participants to hone their knowledge of trauma informed approaches, by creating equality within the members and avoiding more traditional hierarchical models. This helps to build trust and understanding between participants and therefore improves the trauma-informed approach.
Other ways in which trauma-informed practice and coproduction complement one another can also be found in their corresponding direction. Many of the ideas and experiences of trauma-informed practice, can help facilitate and enhance the performance of the co-productive bubble. Confidence and trust can be gained to help eliminating a significant degree of anxiety, that might otherwise hinder the work of the group.
Ultimately, participants in any co-productive bubble, must use not only their own strengths, but also those of their fellow participants, and it takes time and trust to build a good working relationship. Whilst it must be noted that time and energy are not in limitless abundance, applying a trauma-informed approach acts as a catalyst for breaking down any potential defensive barriers, that could obstruct the ultimate goals of the group and prevent progress being made in a co-productive environment.