By Tina Coldham, SCIE Co-production Network chair
When we ran the first ever National
Co-production week last year we had no idea whether the idea would catch on. So it was
with great anxiety that we started feverishly tweeting to launch the week in July 2016.
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| Tina Coldham Make your Co-production Week commitment >>> |
Organisations big and small contributed
It wasn’t until the week itself that we knew for sure that the idea had caught on. Thankfully lots of bodies supported
the week from the Care Quality Commission, Turning Point, Hampshire County
Council and the King’s Fund to the Older People's Advocacy Alliance OPAAL (UK),
Spectrum Centre for Independent Living
and Helix Arts.
Co-production blogspot was a hot spot
Our Co-production Week blog 2016 was very
popular with 7,000 views of 30 blogs that gave an insight into the range of co-production activity that goes on across the country.
It included amazing blogs such as ‘Welcome to the Dementia Underground
Resistance Charm Offensive’ by Larry Gardiner of Young Dementia, ‘The co-production revolution’ by Rachael Wallach, founder of #HackOnWheels and ‘Co-production is a rare and precious
thing’ by June Sadd, survivor / consultant.
SCIE’s co-production festival 2016
SCIE co-production festival was
crammed with people who came together to celebrate co-production, network and
enjoy poetry, music and comedy. The day was topped off with an amazing perform
by SCIE’s Chief Executive Tony Hunter singing "I can’t get no co-production" accompanied by yours truly on the ukelele. Perhaps the less said about that the
better.
Co-production week 2017
Co-production week 2017 is 3rd to 7th of July. We want this year’s week to be even bigger and
better. You can support the week by blogging, tweeting, sharing good practice
and organising events. We will be holding our second Co-production festival on
5th July with disabled comedian Francesca Martinez headlining. Regionally, Touchstone,
a forward-thinking provider in Leeds has already scheduled in an event on 6th
July.
Make a co-production commitment
This year we are asking
organisations and individuals not just to support Co-production Week in
principle, but to tell us what they are actually going to do by making a co-production commitment. The Commitment means promising to do at least one
thing to support co-production. For organisations, it could be anything from
doing a new co-production plan to sending some staff on a training course.
Individuals can look at how they can do more co-production in their work.
Nothing about us without us!
We need your help to make
Co-production week 2017 a success. We want to show that despite difficult times, people who use services, carers
and supporters are determined to make our voice heard. Nothing about us
without us!
