You are here: HOME Kit Part 4. Lived Experience

Part 4.

Lived Experience

Lived experience is the experience of people on whom a social issue, or combination of issues, has had a direct personal impact.[1] People who have lived through housing insecurity or homelessness, or any problem, usually have the best understanding about what the problem is and what needs to be done to address it. Without including people with lived experience in decision making processes, it can create an unbalanced approach to ending social issues such as homelessness as the perspective of the individual provides valuable insights to the problem.[2] Avoiding this can lead to services being better designed and meeting the needs of the end user resulting in positive outcomes not just for people but also for organisations.

[1] People with Disabilities (PwDWA). 2020. ‘Connect With Me: Training Toolkit’

[2] Suomi, A., Freeman, M.B. and Banfield, M., 2016. ‘Framework for the engagement of people with a lived experience in program implementation and research

Lived experience derives from the ‘consumer’ movement, which is a human rights movement shown in Part 3. Empowerment and participation of people central to the issue is considered essential internationally to progress this human rights agenda. This movement is an effort to promote ‘consumer protection’ through an organised movement, which is typically led by consumer organisations. It advocates for the rights of consumers, especially when those rights are actively breached by the actions of corporations, governments, and other organisations which provide products and services to people (consumers). [1]

Along with the knowledge, insights, and the perspectives which come with lived experience, there is an opportunity to better identify problems and effective solutions; have more awareness of what is actually happening; strengthen the credibility and accountability of any form of work; reduce suspicion of funding decisions; enhance community cohesion and generate new ideas. Decades of top-down research, service provision, and policy-making have not ended issues such as homelessness – putting people with lived experience at the centre is vital for this to change.

Put simply lived experience is expertise gained from having a specific life experience, which provides unique insights that must be valued. This ‘context expertise’ contrasts with academic or ‘content expertise’, much like how professionals in organisations have educated knowledge that others may not have, people with lived experience have experiential knowledge that most do not have.[2] Everybody has their own lived experience. Examples of people with lived experience expertise depends on the context and will likely include the following as outlined by the WA Council of Social Services in their Lived Experience Framework:

● First Nations peoples
● People from a culturally and linguistically diverse background
● People with a disability, mental ill health or other chronic or severe health issues
● People who have experienced poverty, unemployment, underemployment or unstable housing and homelessness
● People who have experienced violence or recovering from trauma
● Young people, older people, single-parent families
● Women
● Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex individuals and communities
●People living in rural and remote communities.[3]

In this toolkit, ‘Lived Experience’ refers to people with lived experience of homelessness and housing insecurity. Shelter WA acknowledges the unique expertise of people with lived experience and the insights they bring to policy, advocacy, and service design in housing and homelessness.

As stated in the 2018 Department of Communities Report ‘Homelessness in WA: A review of the research and statistical evidence’ – “Including the voice of people with a lived experience of homelessness is critical for designing and implementing effective responses to homelessness. The sheer complexity and variety of individual pathways to and from homelessness means that hearing from individuals is even more critical”.[4]

“ A person is the sum of all their yesterdays, appreciating today and planning for their tomorrow’s. The whole is greater than the sum of the parts, this toolkit will only influence positive outcomes if it is used extensively the way it has been designed.” – HOME Lived Experience Advocate

[1] Lived Experience Advisory Council. 2016. ‘Nothing about us without us: Seven principles for leadership and inclusion of people with lived experience of homelessness’

[2] Western Australian Council of Social Services (WACOSS). (2020). ‘WACOSS Lived Experience Framework’ Perth, Western Australia.

[3] Western Australian Council of Social Services (WACOSS). (2020). ‘WACOSS Lived Experience Framework’ Perth, Western Australia.

[4] Kaleveld, L., Seivwright, A., Box, E., Callis, Z. and Flatau, P. (2018). Homelessness in Western Australia: A review of the research and statistical evidence. Perth: Government of Western Australia, Department of Communities

A consistent theme that emerged from the HOME lived experience advocates was the current lack of input for and co-design with people who have lived experience into the systems, services and organisations that currently operate in the areas of housing, homelessness, the wider community sector and Government. This can be summarised as a deficit of lived experience engagement and input in the areas of:

  • Service and program delivery
  • Policy, legislation, and regulation
  • System design
  • Advocacy and campaigns
  • Media coverage and public speaking

Evidence shows that is should be a major aim of organisations to increase the amount and quality of lived experience co-design and engagement in various areas of society to deliver more effective solutions and optimal outcomes,[1] [2] in this case the area of housing and homelessness. It is critical for government and non-government organisations to co-design and engage with people who have lived experience as it can provide informed ideas and new perspectives, better identify problems and opportunities, increase understanding of people’s needs and the capacity to navigate difficult situations, gain credibility, and most importantly have a genuine connection with the community and those who experience the issue.[3]

Co-design and engagement may occur in a broad range of ways such as from board and advisory group membership, consultation, working group, or systemic advocacy positions, education, training, and one-on-one support. Participation includes any dedicated paid engagement, role, or advice that specifically requires a perspective informed by a personal lived experience.

Lived experience engagements and roles that embed the perspective of people with lived experience in processes have been shown to improve outcomes for the people who have lived experience and people using services in ways that can be measured from both clinical and recovery perspectives.[4] This includes feeling heard and empowered, learning new skills, have increased trust in systems, increased employment prospects, and having the opportunity to meet new people and create positive change.

Contemporary policies and lived experience advocates urge that Government and non-Government services and policies be truly centred on the people who use them as an ethical and democratic right.[5] To achieve this, organisations must embrace the participation, influence, and leadership of people with lived experience in the design, delivery, monitoring, reporting, research, evaluation, and improvement of activities. This will lead to better outcomes for people experiencing the issue and better outcomes for organisation through that real world and community focused input as shown below.

Co-designing with people who have lived experience reflects a fundamental shift in the traditional provider-client, researcher-subject relationship. The co-design approach enables a wide range of people to make a creative contribution in the formulation and solution of a problem. This approach goes beyond consultation by building and deepening equal collaboration between people affected by, or attempting to, resolve a particular challenge. A key tenet of co-design is that end users, as experts of their own experience, become central to the design and production process.[6]

[1] Kaleveld, L., Seivwright, A., Box, E., Callis, Z. and Flatau, P. (2018). Homelessness in Western Australia: A review of the research and statistical evidence. Perth: Government of Western Australia, Department of Communities

[2] Western Australian Alliance to Ending Homelessness. 2020. ‘#EndHomelessness Review of Literature & Practice: Co-Design’. Perth: Centre for Social Impact.

[3] Domestic Violence NSW, Homelessness NSW and Yfoundations. 2018. ‘Consumer Representation Resource Kit’

[4] Suomi, A., Freeman, M.B. and Banfield, M., 2016. ‘Framework for the engagement of people with a lived experience in program implementation and research.’

[5] Health Consumers Council Western Australia. (2016). Principles & Best Practice Strategies for Consumer Engagement in the Alcohol and Other Drugs Sector in Western Australia. Western Australia: Health Consumers Council Western Australia.

[6] Sercombe, J., Stubley, K., Wellington, K., Clark, K., and Flatau, P. (2019). Co-design Toolkit: Developing an Action Plan to #EndHomelessness. Centre for Social Impact, UWA.

Lived Experience Story: Jai – Lived Experience Mentoring and Training

Jai immigrated to Australia several years ago due to unrest in his home country and seeking a better life. Unfortunately, due to language and cultural barriers, and a long-standing injury he was unable to find sustained work and lived in insecure crisis and transitional housing struggling to financially and mentally cope.

A friend connected him to the support of some community organisations, and he quickly overcame those personal and professional barriers and found stable income and a rental tenancy in affordable housing. Jai then decided he wanted to give back and support others who are experiencing similar issues. He decided to apply to be part of a community organisation’s lived experience mentoring program and now he is paid to co-facilitate weekly workshops for migrants adapting to their new lives and avoid the housing and job insecurity he experienced.

Jai feels proud that his contributions have improved the organisation’s program that has supported their service delivery and people that have experienced what he went through.

Case Study: Youth Affairs Council WA (YACWA) – Youth Homelessness Advisory Council (YHAC)

The Homeless Youth Advisory Council (HYAC), now called the Youth Homeless Advisory Council (YHAC) (as young people involved did not want to be defined by their homelessness) was formed at YACWA. With support from the WA Alliance to End Homelessness to provide a young person lived experience perspective to co-design and contribute towards the development of an action plan for State Government to end youth homelessness.

YACWA advertised and recruited for the roles, and the selected council members were brought on as casual staff. With a mix of different lived experiences of homelessness, the group have brought an essential voice of younger people into the WA sector community, enabling YACWA and other organisations to ensure positive outcomes for young people are achieved. The group participated in action lab co-design workshops, have conducted design research, and undertook an overview of the homelessness service landscape through a ‘service safari’.

Through its great work amplifying the voice of younger people, HYAC members have found being part of the group to be professionally and personally developing; and the wider WA community sector have found YHAC to be significantly important in policy, service, and advocacy developments and efforts.

More Information: https://www.yacwa.org.au/youth-leadership/yhac/

It is critical to understand the benefits and barriers that come with lived experience co-design and engagement before commencing, to ensure you avoid the barriers, know what you are trying to achieve, and create a beneficial experience for all involved. It is important for organisations to be fully aware of the impact that poorly executed involvement has on all parties, as well as know what positive involvement looks like and the benefits it brings to outcomes.

Benefits to people with lived experience

In terms of the benefits for people with lived experience when they are involved in co-design or being engaged with, there are unquestionably many positives for people when it is done correctly, this can be in the form of deep professional and personal beneficial outcomes as shown below.

Promotes and provides:

  • Empathy.
  • Balancing and sharing of power.
  • Connection and mutuality.
  • Understanding, hope and trust.
  • Personal and professional development, and in some instances, recovery from issues.

Increased:

  • Recognition for their value, experience, and unique expertise.
  • Ownership, responsibility, equality, and reciprocity.
  • Confidence, self-esteem, and connection to community.
  • Ability to navigate systems and processes.
  • Employment prospects.

Opportunities to:

  • Develop new skills and knowledge such as public speaking, writing, policy knowledge, advocacy techniques etc.
  • Connect, network, and represent others.
  • Receive support in a variety of ways.
  • Explore creative expression and/or to contribute and give back.
  • Be part of positive and more sustainable changes to services, policies, regulations, and legislations.[1] [2] [3] [4]

Benefits to Organisations:

It is recognised that the more people and user interests are integrated into an organisation’s design and work processes, the better the outcome for organisations.[5] The benefits of meaningful lived experience engagement are well documented in research and have been identified by HOME lived experience advocates. These benefits are seen to extend to all involved – organisations and people with lived experience. There are numerous established benefits that emerge from positive lived experience engagement shown below:

  • Gain credibility among people experiencing the issue.
  • Identify problems and opportunities in services.
  • Access diverse experiences, skills, fresh ideas, and perspectives.
  • Increase opportunity for more creative or innovative projects and activities.
  • Reduce consumer resentment or suspicion of funding decisions.
  • Increase understanding of people’s needs.
  • Increase capacity to navigate difficult situations.
  • Contribute significantly to positive workplace culture, particularly in improving recovery orientation and reducing prejudicial attitudes.
  • Improve awareness of changes in the community that can impact on consumers.
  • Support better and more sustainable outcomes.[6] [7]

Barriers for Organisations

There may be several concerns, questions, misconceptions, illiteracies, and roadblocks for organisations considering co-designing and engaging with people who have lived experience. Organisations must critically analyse why they believe whether they are constrained in pursuing genuine lived experience involvement. If not, then there must be clear communication about what involvement can realistically be achieved, with a conscientious effort in implementing best practice (through the guidance of this toolkit and resources recommended in Part 6) to ensure the barriers below are avoided.[8]

  • A lack of resources to meet the investment and remuneration required to support meaningful involvement.
  • A lack of capacity and/or time to support meaningful involvement (staff or appropriately trained staff).
  • A lack of certainty around how to engage and achieve outcomes. Co-design and engagement seem too complex or time-consuming.
  • A lack of belief in the abilities and confidence of people with lived experience to contribute effectively or provide measurable benefits.
  • A lack of organisational culture and empathy that is supportive of engagement with people with lived experience and consumers.
  • A lack of understanding of the benefits that engagement will bring to the organisation.
  • Feel unsure how to avoid paternalistic or tokenistic approaches to engagement.
  • Feel uncertain of what sharing power brings, set against a growing culture of safeguarding, blame and risk aversion.
  • People have unrealistic expectations of what can be achieved.
  • People with lived experience are or may become unable to commit to the project. How do you find people willing and able to get involved?
  • Co-design with lived experience is recognised as being morally right, but is it any more than that? Is this just a fad?[9]

Barriers for People with Lived Experience

A key barrier to all engagement is the numerous barriers that people with lived experience face.  It is crucial that organisations understand and put in place strategies to address the barriers for people with lived experience may face before considering any engagement. The following is a list of barriers as identified by people with lived experience and evidence-based research:

  • Facing stigma, discrimination, and a lack of empathy.
  • The significant (real or perceived) power imbalance between lived experience and organisations.
  • Fear of tokenistic or paternalistic involvement.
  • Discomfort in sharing experiences or providing input.
  • Fear of no confidentiality, support, or past traumas being triggered.
  • A lack of meaningful remuneration and consistency from the organisation.
  • The competition, conflict, or disagreement with other lived experience advocates.
  • Low self-esteem or confidence in effectively and positively being involved.
  • Not knowing about the lived experience and consumer participation activities or projects, or not having the training needed to participate.
  • Organisations being unreceptive or not listening to lived experience feedback and input.
  • Not knowing how information or input provided was going to be used or feeling that nothing would change as a result.
  • Personal circumstances – such as how someone is feeling, their capacity to attend, travel costs, living arrangements, or other commitments.
  • Information can be:
    • difficult to understand or unclear – such as the use of jargon or technical terminology, unknown or complex systems and processes.
    • overloaded or lacking to effectively participate.
  • Cultural barriers for Aboriginal people and people from other cultural backgrounds.
  • Atomisation and isolation – being a solitary lived experience representative.[10] [11]

“People who are disempowered and disadvantaged deserve to participate on an equal footing with everyone else in making our society better, we are calling on you to help us speak up, not speak for us.” – HOME Lived Experience Advocate

[1] Western Australian Alliance to Ending Homelessness. 2020. ‘#EndHomelessness Review of Literature & Practice: Co-Design’. Perth: Centre for Social Impact.

[2] Domestic Violence NSW, Homelessness NSW and Yfoundations. 2018. ‘Consumer Representation Resource Kit’

[3] Higgs, G. 2007. Psychology: Knowing the self through arts. In The handbook of the arts in qualitative research (1st ed.).

[4] Health Consumers Council WA. 2016. Principles & Best Practice Strategies for Consumer Engagement in the Alcohol and Other Drugs Sector in Western Australia.

[5] Evans, M., & Terrey, N. 2016. Co-design with Citizens and Stakeholders. Bristol, United Kingdom: Policy Press.

[6] Domestic Violence NSW, Homelessness NSW and Yfoundations. 2018. ‘Consumer Representation Resource Kit’

[7] Sercombe, J., Stubley, K., Wellington, K., Clark, K., and Flatau, P. (2019). Co-design Toolkit: Developing an Action Plan to #EndHomelessness. Centre for Social Impact: UWA

[8] Evans, M., & Terrey, N. (2016). Co-design with Citizens and Stakeholders. Bristol, United Kingdom: Policy Press.

[9] Boyle, D., & Harris, M. (2009). THE CHALLENGE OF CO-PRODUCTION (p. 28). UK: NESTA.

[10] Clayson, A and Webb, Lucy and Cox, Nigel. 2018. ‘When two worlds collide: Critical reflection on co-production. Drugs and Alcohol’.

[11] Western Australian Council of Social Services (WACOSS). 2020. ‘WACOSS Lived Experience Framework’ Perth, Western Australia.

Throughout this toolkit and the recommended resources in ‘Part 6’ detail how the barriers to lived experience co-design and engagement can be overcome, and ultimately how to proceed in a positive and effective way through approaches and processes. But broadly, lived experience advocates have outlined how it is done:

  • “Less talk – more listening and action”.
  • “Organisations must commit significant resources, renumeration, and time when partnering with us – but the outcomes are worth the effort.”
  • “More clear intention, expectation, and communication from start to finish”.
  • “Genuine engagement is not pressured volunteering with no boundaries. It is being paid appropriately for every hour of work and input given.”
  • “More kindness, trust, empathy, and sharing of power from leadership of organisations and government”.
  • “Active support in both our professional and personal circumstances”.
  • “We need more opportunities, employment, funding, training, and resources that has longevity to support best practice lived experience engagement”.
  • “We want to be accepted, understood, and cared for – but also empowered and treated as an equal”.
  • “Sufficient facilitation, support, and feedback processes to accommodate people’s particular and complex needs is essential”.
  • “Our stories and input are our intellectual property, it must be recognised and treated as such”.
  • “The unique skills and knowledge of people with lived experience being properly utilised and all levels of the system or organisation”.
  • “No tokenistic, paternalistic, or unconscious exploitative engagements. All stigmas and dispositions have to go out of the window”.
  • “Trust people with lived experience to solve organisational issues and find solutions”.
  • “Don’t even start anything with people who have lived experience or are consumers if you are not truly dedicated to best practice and lack the knowledge of our rights and of how to co-design.”

What does poor Lived Experience Engagement look like?

In addition to the barriers and general lack of opportunities for people with lived experience to engage with organisations, in sectors where opportunities do exist, there is often a danger that these engagements have been and can be inadequate in a variety of ways that can negatively impact people and organisations.

There are many reasons how and why involvement of lived experience can lead to inadequate outcomes. Typically, a lack of understanding or clarity about lived experience and the context and parameters of the engagement process creates risks for lived experience co-design and engagement being absorbed and co-opted into traditional ways of working, diminishing their impact, and creating issues in the engagement.

Below are a few ways this materialises:

  • Paternalistic, tokenistic, extractive, or exploitative approaches to people.
  • Disempowering – there is an unwillingness to share power with or create space for people.
  • Patronising, condescending, sanctimonious, or superior attitudes when dealing with people.
  • Difficulty to manage tensions between traditional research and work practice and lived experience perspectives on appropriate solutions.
  • Cannot accommodate the necessary extra time and resources.
  • Being lied to, ignored, and/or misled.
  • Using or exploiting people consciously or unconsciously to ‘tick a box’.
  • Negative perception of people with lived experience and the value of their input.
  • Treating people with a pre-disposition towards the stigmas of experiencing issues such as homelessness, which can be re-traumatising (i.e. they must not be a good or capable person, it is their own fault, their experience is an inevitable part of life etc.)[1] [2]

[1] Western Australian Alliance to Ending Homelessness. 2020. ‘#EndHomelessness Review of Literature & Practice: Co-Design’. Perth: Centre for Social Impact.
[2] NHS England. 2020. ‘Progress through partnership: Involvement of people lived experience of mental illness in CCG commissioning’. Rethink Mental Illness. Dr Phil Moore.

Everyone has lived experience through their own lives, and everyone’s lived experience is diverse and different. As outlined in the WACOSS Lived Experience Framework there is no right, or wrong experience, and all experiences bring different perspectives that are equally important. It is also true that no two people’s lived experience’s will be identical, even if they have some experiences in common, such as homelessness.[1]

It is important to understand and make space for this diversity, knowing that engaging with people who have lived experience does not provide a single, broad answer or a fixed point of view. There will be a natural diversity of opinions and aims between people who have lived experience due to their individually diverse lived experiences and backgrounds. To minimise conflict and utilise these differences for positive outcomes, organisations must provide an environment and communication that promotes acceptance and inclusivity, tailored supports for each person, and ultimately the practices from this toolkit to ensure each person’s diversity is respected and empowered.

“People are individuals that have but are not defined by their lived experience – people are not just what they have been through in the past. We must respect everyone in their diversity and have no pre-conceived judgements.” – HOME Lived Experience Advocate

For the purposes of a co-design or engagement it is important to about a specific area of expertise that is needed by an organisation or service provider (e.g. lived experience of rough sleeping, public or private housing eviction etc.). Lived experience diversity also includes but is not limited to the cultural, age, gender, ability, and other considerations.[2] But organisations should not take a mechanical or criteria approach to diversity and inclusion, which can result in multiple, unrelated interventions that will not address the most critical issues and absorb resources without any measurable and sustained impact to desired outcomes.

Because inclusion references the lived experiences of everyone, the most effective methods of engagement must be organised around people experiencing inclusion rather than simply, tick-the-box checklists. A holistic and integrated approach to diversity and inclusion minimises resistance, avoids program overload, and improves the return on investment for organisations utilising the expertise of lived experience, by directing efforts to initiatives that will have the largest impact.

Top Tip 1: Only co-design or engage if organisations address known barriers to engagement and increase access and inclusion from diverse communities.
Top Tip 2: Organisations must recognise and value diversity, ensuring they are culturally secure and responsive to the varying needs and perspectives of a diverse range of people with lived experience.

[1] Western Australian Council of Social Services (WACOSS). (2020). ‘WACOSS Lived Experience Framework’ Perth, Western Australia.

[2] Mental Health Commission. (2018). Working Together – Mental Health and Alcohol and Other Drug – Engagement Framework. Government of Western Australia

Lived experience advocacy, sometimes known as consumer advocacy is an area that emphasises the uniquely valuable perspective of people whose expertise is gained from having a specific life experience. Lived experience advocacy is based on the principle that people have a right to be included in decisions that affect them, including about processes or services that affect their housing situation. Contributing to the development of your community is an internationally recognised human right.[1]

A lived experience advocate is someone with lived experience of housing insecurity and/or homelessness and who:

  • Gives advice about issues that affect them; e.g. may help plan a new program, policy, set service priorities, participate in projects or advise on ways to improve services.
  • Advocates for the rights of people to services and government, especially the needs of marginalised groups, such as women, ethnic, sexual and gender minorities, people with disability or mental illness.
“…Recognizing that advocacy development is a comprehensive economic, social, cultural and political process, which aims at the constant improvement of the well-being of the entire population and of all individuals on the basis of their active, free and meaningful participation in development and in the fair distribution of benefits resulting there from…Human rights based participation is an important tool to empower people living in poverty by allowing them to exercise their voice to influence relevant decision-making processes.”[2]
United Nations

To be an effective lived experience advocate, a person needs adequate information about the organisation, issue and/or service they are working with. To support this involvement Organisations must actively facilitate and support this and provide appropriate opportunities (discussed later) to contribute.

Different Types of Lived Experience Advocacy

A number of different types of advocacy exist. The strength of each advocacy type depends on how well the individual, group or organisation’s advocacy efforts meet the key elements expressed in the definition of advocacy.

Self-advocacy Self-advocacy refers to an individual’s ability to effectively communicate their own interests, desires, needs and rights. It recognises that people are experts by their own experience and involves them in speaking out for themselves about the things that are important to them. “I speak for myself”
Individual advocacy Self-determination is the right of a group of people to have full power over their own lives.
Self- determination starts with the basic ideas of freedom to design a life plan, authority to control some targeted amounts of resources, support that is highly individualised and opportunities to be a contributing citizen of the community		 “I will support you to speak for yourself”
Systemic advocacy Systemic advocacy is the process of representing and advocating for the needs and interests of a group of people for changes or improvements in services, government policies and community. “I speak for members of my peer group”
Source WACOSS [3]

Ultimately, it is helpful to note that self-advocacy is the end objective in lived experience advocacy. Organisations must support and respect people with lived experience they are co-designing or engaging with to achieve a level of self-advocacy, but that is not to say other forms of advocacy are not acceptable as types of advocacy can vary depending on the circumstances.[4]

Lived Experience Story: Grace – Lived Experience Peer Support and Advocacy

Grace is a mother and grandmother, having lived in the suburbs and worked in retail most of her life, her kids moved interstate and after some time she experienced domestic violence whilst living with her new partner and was forced to leave. After sleeping in her car and occasionally couch surfing at a friend’s place for a number of months, she then found women’s refuge who could support her recovery and transition to her own housing.

She was recently asked to join a community sector peak body’s new lived experience bureau made up of people with lived experience of domestic violence to mentor others with lived experience; and share their unique story and perspective of lived experience to increase understanding of the issue and promote positive strategies for recovery and wellbeing. Grace is supported and provided training with peers by professional staff and prepare their presentations to suit the audience.

Grace loves to inspire and advocate, seeking to help create the positive change needed for other women to never experience domestic violence and associated issues such as homelessness. She finds from this experience that she has better recovered from her trauma and helping others do the same has helped her regain her confidence and happiness. She feels this experience will also assist him in future employment.

Case Study: Council to Homeless Persons – Peer Education Support Program

The Peer Education Support Program (PESP) is a volunteer program that provides people who have experienced homelessness with the opportunity to improve the service system. PESP team members play a key role in promoting the benefits and transformative power of consumer participation in service system and policy development.

An example of the work undertaken by the program is their work as key advisors to the City of Melbourne ‘StreetCount’. The City of Melbourne local government in partnership with a variety of community organisations have conducted StreetCount, with the intention of improving the understanding of the population of people experiencing homelessness in the City of Melbourne and to assist them in developing new pathways into secure housing.

The PESP team were crucial to achieving positive outcomes as they worked as key advisors throughout the StreetCount from both a practical and philosophical standpoint. This came through unique advice to the City of Melbourne in its processs as well as sharing their stories of rough sleeping with volunteers during training, which helped give meaning and purpose to the StreetCount.

Their generosity and honesty helped give meaning and purpose to the StreetCount. PESP members and also worked to promote the event with homelessness support agencies and participated in the StreetCount itself.

More Information: https://chp.org.au/services/pesp/

[1] Western Australian Alliance to Ending Homelessness. 2020. ‘#EndHomelessness Review of Literature & Practice: Co-Design’. Perth: Centre for Social Impact.

[2] United Nations. 1986. ‘Declaration on the Right to Development’

[3] Western Australian Council of Social Services (WACOSS). (2020). ‘WACOSS Lived Experience Framework’ Perth, Western Australia.

[4] WA Department of Health. (2017). You Matter: A guideline to support engagement with consumers, carers, communities and clinicians in health.

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