What does good coproduction look like?

One of our ambitions at Changing Futures in Bristol is to have a standard of good coproduction that everyone could adhere to across the city. In September, we hosted an event at Bristol Beacon which gathered people with lived and/or learned experience from many organisations and sectors across the city. Together we co-produced and agreed a set of six principles which define what good coproduction looks like.

Those six principles are:

- Creativity

- Relationships

- Resources

- Equality, diversity and inclusion

- Trauma informed

- Sustainability

While there is consensus across the system that these are the right principles to uphold, applying them to your work practice can feel challenging, especially in the current climate of austerity and amid a recruitment crisis.

We hosted a webinar at the start of December to highlight what the principles look like when they are put in practice. Members of Independent Futures, our lived experience consultants, gave an example from their own work experience to illustrate each principle. This is what they had to say.

Creativity: Coproduction requires a creative and flexible approach to working. Sometimes, adaptations will need to be made to create an inclusive space where professionals and people with lived experience can contribute equally and meaningfully.

Alexander illustrated this by highlighting the benefits of having hybrid meetings to allow attendees to join either in person or online depending on their personal circumstances and preferences. He also mentioned creative ways in which people can interact during the meetings, by allowing people to voice their thoughts in the chat rather than out loud for example.

Relationships: When working with people with lived experience, taking the time to build trusting relationships is key to success. This requires open and transparent communication and of course, respect.

Alexander shared an example of when he was asked to be part of an interview panel. He detailed how much time the recruiter had put into building a relationship with him ahead of the interviews. In his own words, taking the time to get to know people really humanises the person you are working with and helps people feel more confident to contribute.

Resources: Coproduction must be resourced properly if it is to be successful. That means allocating enough time, support and equipment as well as rewarding people appropriately for their time and input.

Tom mentioned his work with the Link Team in Bristol and a leaflet they are currently coproducing with them. They have regular catch ups with the team manager and much thought has been given to the equipment and adaptations needed to make the work accessible to all.

EDI: Good coproduction relies heavily on equality, diversity and inclusion. For it to be meaningful, you want to gather multiple and diverse perspectives and no one opinion or experience is more important than others within the same space.

SJ talked about the challenges they face in attending training in person and the adaptations that were made to make them possible to take part. For example, they mentioned facilitating online access and building in regular breaks while ensuring no information gets lost in between.

Trauma Informed: Often, working with people with lived experience means working with people who have experienced trauma. Taking a compassionate approach and creating a safe space is important to empower people to contribute to the work.

SJ highlighted the importance of choice to enable people to engage in a way that works for them which creates a sense of safety.

Sustainability: People with lived experience bring much value to our work and where possible, we should look at ways we can invest in them, whether it be through education or through work opportunities.

Tom recalled the example of the peer trainee role within Independent Futures which is a salaried role which allows people to build their professional skills and start a career. By creating starter positions within services, we create opportunities for people with lived experience to live a life beyond services.

To hear more about our coproduction principles and how they can be applied to your work, you can watch the webinar in full here.

If you’d like our Lived Experience lead to host a coproduction workshop for your team, please contact us at info@changingfuturesbristol.co.uk