Co-design lessons from the Lived Experience Network – part two
In 2019, the South Australian Government’s Department of Human Services (DHS) engaged consultants Dana Shen (DS Consultancy) and Melanie Lambert (Think Human) to co-design a new Child and Family Support System with the community services sector and community members.
A core foundation of their approach was to engage effectively and authentically with families with lived experience. These families acted as ‘system advisors’, providing advice and support to guide the development of the system, to improve it for others. The collaboration was so successful that a Lived Experience Network (LEN) was formally established the following year.
In the second episode of this two-part series (part one here), Dana, Mel and former LEN Coordinator Yasmin Sinclair discuss how the lived experience network was able to embed the group’s existence and functions within the system they had been invited to reform. They also share some of the ways they ensured that lived experience voices would be elevated in the new system.
In this episode you will learn:
- key considerations when developing terms of reference for a group of lived experience family partners [02:16]
- the importance of amplifying and empowering families’ voices within services and systems [04:26]
- how deconstructing systems can assist to build a genuine sense of power and influence for lived experience family partners [06:30]
- practical considerations that support and enable effective lived experience contributions from families [09:22]
Further information and resources:
Child and family partnerships toolkit (Emerging Minds)
Child and family partnerships framework (Emerging Minds)