8 Creating a platform together for the voice of the service user: inspiration for organising an event together with service users
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Ruth Strudwick
Abstract
This chapter describes two annual conferences that are run in partnership with service users in both the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. The conferences have some differences in the way they are planned and delivered, but there are also many common themes. At both events, service users share their stories and interact with students. This chapter gives a description of both conferences and shares the experiences of the authors in organising an event with service users.
There are many ways to involve service users in education. Approaches used by colleagues in different universities and countries can be a source of inspiration. It is possible to learn from their experiences and develop ideas and tips for your own situation. This happened when the authors of this chapter came together to write this chapter.
The conference at the University of Suffolk, UK, is an interprofessional event and is a mandatory part of the curriculum for all second-year students on the following undergraduate courses which lead to registration as health or social care professionals: adult nursing, mental health nursing, child health nursing, midwifery, operating department practice, paramedic science, social work, diagnostic radiography and therapeutic radiography. The post-graduate police students also attend. The conference has been running for four years and there are approximately five hundred delegates, including students and qualified professionals from the health service, the police and social services. The aim of the conference is to promote service-user involvement and to hear the voices of service users. The conference title reflects this: ‘Can You Hear Me? The Voice of the Service User’. Due to the number of different professionals attending the conference, a wide range of service users from different backgrounds are involved.
Abstract
This chapter describes two annual conferences that are run in partnership with service users in both the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. The conferences have some differences in the way they are planned and delivered, but there are also many common themes. At both events, service users share their stories and interact with students. This chapter gives a description of both conferences and shares the experiences of the authors in organising an event with service users.
There are many ways to involve service users in education. Approaches used by colleagues in different universities and countries can be a source of inspiration. It is possible to learn from their experiences and develop ideas and tips for your own situation. This happened when the authors of this chapter came together to write this chapter.
The conference at the University of Suffolk, UK, is an interprofessional event and is a mandatory part of the curriculum for all second-year students on the following undergraduate courses which lead to registration as health or social care professionals: adult nursing, mental health nursing, child health nursing, midwifery, operating department practice, paramedic science, social work, diagnostic radiography and therapeutic radiography. The post-graduate police students also attend. The conference has been running for four years and there are approximately five hundred delegates, including students and qualified professionals from the health service, the police and social services. The aim of the conference is to promote service-user involvement and to hear the voices of service users. The conference title reflects this: ‘Can You Hear Me? The Voice of the Service User’. Due to the number of different professionals attending the conference, a wide range of service users from different backgrounds are involved.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Front Matter i
- Contents vii
- List of figures and tables ix
- Notes on contributors x
- Acknowledgements xix
- Introduction 1
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Collaborative models in social work education
- The gap-mending concept: theory and practice 11
- Mending gaps in social work education in the UK 23
- Service users as tandem partners in social work education 35
- Service users as supervisors in social work education: mending the gap of power relations 49
- Involving students with mental health experience in social work education 61
- The Living Library in social work education 73
- Creating a platform together for the voice of the service user: inspiration for organising an event together with service users 85
- Reflections on inspiring conversations in social work education: the voices of Scottish experts by experience and Italian students 97
- Joint workshops with students and service users in social work education: experiences from Esslingen, Germany 109
- Service users, students and staff: co-producing creative educational activities on a social work programme in the UK 117
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Collaborative models in research and policy
- The co-researcher role in the tension between recognition, co-option and tokenism 133
- Community of development: a model for inclusive learning, research and innovation 145
- Dialogue, skills and trust: some lessons learned from co-writing with service users 158
- Participatory pathways in social policymaking: between rhetoric and reality 170
- Experiential knowledge as a driver of change 183
-
Reflective chapters
- Experiences matter equally 199
- Ethical issues in the meaningful involvement of service users as co-researchers 209
- Involving service users in social work education and research: is this structural social work? 224
- Index 238
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Front Matter i
- Contents vii
- List of figures and tables ix
- Notes on contributors x
- Acknowledgements xix
- Introduction 1
-
Collaborative models in social work education
- The gap-mending concept: theory and practice 11
- Mending gaps in social work education in the UK 23
- Service users as tandem partners in social work education 35
- Service users as supervisors in social work education: mending the gap of power relations 49
- Involving students with mental health experience in social work education 61
- The Living Library in social work education 73
- Creating a platform together for the voice of the service user: inspiration for organising an event together with service users 85
- Reflections on inspiring conversations in social work education: the voices of Scottish experts by experience and Italian students 97
- Joint workshops with students and service users in social work education: experiences from Esslingen, Germany 109
- Service users, students and staff: co-producing creative educational activities on a social work programme in the UK 117
-
Collaborative models in research and policy
- The co-researcher role in the tension between recognition, co-option and tokenism 133
- Community of development: a model for inclusive learning, research and innovation 145
- Dialogue, skills and trust: some lessons learned from co-writing with service users 158
- Participatory pathways in social policymaking: between rhetoric and reality 170
- Experiential knowledge as a driver of change 183
-
Reflective chapters
- Experiences matter equally 199
- Ethical issues in the meaningful involvement of service users as co-researchers 209
- Involving service users in social work education and research: is this structural social work? 224
- Index 238
