Lived Experience Partners can provide insights into what truly matters to service users. Their perspectives help to ensure that innovation is grounded in the realities of people’s lives, making services more responsive and tailored to real needs. And innovation is more likely to be adopted and sustained when co-designed with those who use the services.
In 2024/25, the Mission team recruited and embedded two Lived Experience Partners, Ellie
and Deepa. Their involvement has significantly shaped the way we develop and deliver interventions.
Our Innovation Forum, an in-person event bringing together over 50 NWL stakeholders from across sectors, opened with a dedicated session where Ellie and Deepa shared their own reflections and insights. Sharing perspectives from their lived experiences ensured we prioritised the voices of the population we serve, which permeated throughout the day. We continue to seek their input and feedback in planning and delivery of future events – including ensuring we have more inclusive networking tools that recognise Lived Experience Partners as equal contributors, not just observers.
Ellie and Deepa’s involvement has also highlighted the need for accessible, bite-sized resources, particularly for neurodivergent users. Their insights are being considered in redesigning patient information materials from the Cheyne Child Development Service, a family-centered service based at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, dedicated to supporting children with special educational and developmental needs.
Their input has also helped to identify systemic issues, such as communication gaps in shared care plans. This has led to recommendations for integration and clearer care pathways, which we will consider in subsequent implementation phases.
“We’ve had quite a lot of input into where the Mission goes… our decisions have been taken into account.”- Ellie, Lived Experience Partner
“It’s nice that the collective voice is heard in a way that feels good.”- Deepa, Lived Experience Partner
