Residents of Leicestershire accessing adult social care services are being invited to make a difference and volunteer for Leicestershire County Council’s Engagement Panel.
The Engagement Panel is made up of senior leaders and the Director of Adults & Communities, as well as volunteer members who have lived experiences of accessing adult social care.
As well as being an important opportunity for volunteers who are best placed to use their knowledge to help advise the council on how it can improve services, the panel also ensures that key decisions are shaped by residents, service users and carers.
Volunteer members come from all walks of life, with a diverse range of physical and psychological needs. They provide valuable insights into how the service can best support vulnerable adults within the wider community to live active, independent, and fulfilling lives.
Some reflections from current members of the engagement panel:
- “I joined the panel in the hope that my lived experience could make a difference. With my knowledge of social services, I felt I could make a valuable contribution to the engagement process.” Simone
- “I wanted to make a positive difference to people’s lives and help them gain knowledge and access to the help they are entitled to. I also wanted to represent people like me, who have physical disabilities as we often have to fight to be heard.” Ellie
- “The co-production panel is a really vital element of the structure of the council’s Adults & Communities department. Please come and join people like me and help enhance the council’s understanding of how to communicate information to the wider public.” Luke
The Engagement Panel has been appointed as the Adults & Communities department’s ‘Co-production Sponsor’. This will involve the Panel challenging the department to ensure that it is making decisions and designing services in collaboration with residents, service users and carers.
Anyone interested in becoming a Panel member or who would like to find out more can visit the engagement panel web page and fill in the online application form.
For further information, please contact the Strategy and Planning Team via e-mail a&c-strategy@leics.gov.uk or phone 0116 305 4886.