My experience as a young co-chair- Guest blog Hattie Greaves
Hattie is an undergraduate studying Psychology with mental health and has been a volunteer with ‘Our Voices’ group as well as other projects over the last 2 years.
The role of a young co-chair
Last December I was appointed as the co-chair for a young persons (age 16-25) mental health review driven by Taproot, and commissioned by NHS Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Integrated Care System. The main aim was to understand and use perspectives of young people and their families who rely on these services in writing a set of recommendations for local commissioners.
My role as the co-chair, with Taproot’s Juliet Snell, was to oversee the direction of the project, applying my perspective as a young person with lived experience to the monthly steering groups, provider meetings and data collection workshops.
My experience
As an undergraduate in psychology this has been an invaluable learning experience for me into the inner workings of a project, how each service runs and what they contribute to the community. I have loved having conversations with service providers, young people and their families to understand more about this sector of work. Using my voice to aid this review has developed my confidence and organisational skills as well as my knowledge of this type of work.
Initially I was nervous going into such a big project, however I was supported by both Taproot and Fullscope with pre and post meetings to help me understand the content, ease my nerves which overall led me to becoming more involved.
Advice for involving/being a young chair:
After being involved in this project I would encourage organisations to have a young co-chair to understand the challenges young people face so that appropriate recommendations can be embedded within service design.
This should be implemented within all projects (where necessary) as it will aid the confidence, organisation and knowledge of the young person while pinpointing issues that may be lost within services.
My recommendations for organisations are:
To understand the young person(s) getting involved
To understand accessibility needs of those involved, (e.g. sending documents early)
Assign someone to check in with young person/attend meetings with them (if necessary).
My recommendations to young people taking on this role
Take every opportunity to have your voice heard
Get to know the people you are working with and their services, you may want to work in this sector when you’re older!
Ask lots of questions
Get involved!
Overall, I have loved this experience and I push organisations to take on young chairs for the benefits of both you and the young people!
Feedback from Juliet, Taproot
This review was lead and chaired by a young person, Hattie Greaves. Having her own experiences of mental ill health, seeking and using services and managing her own health, she showed initiative and leadership to steer us through. Not only do we owe her a debt of thanks for helping us maintain momentum and focus through the process, her leadership shows us that young people can and do show us the way forward.
Learn more about other projects Fullscope are involved with.