‘Being involved in a process is not equivalent to having a voice. Voice needs to be nurtured. People need to feel able to express themselves without fear of reprisals or the expectation of not being listened to or taken seriously. Translating voices into influence requires more than simply effective ways of capturing what people want to say; it involves efforts ‘from above’ and ‘from below’’ (Cornwall, 2008, p,278).
As part of the programme of work undertaken by the Your Family Your Voice Alliance, a new report by Professors Featherstone & Morris has been published. The report presents the latest research on families’ experiences of statutory intervention about their children and identifies the large amount of knowledge and practice wisdom carried by families. Opening the door to the possibilities of reforming our services from the ‘bottom up’.
‘Developing different types of service engagement increasingly co-exists with thinking beyond families as the recipients of services but rather also as the producers and co-producers.
Another thought provoking and important read: Stepping Up, Stepping Down.How families make sense of working with welfare services
niromp.org 