Young people celebrate two years of making a difference at celebration event
Young people have been praised as change-makers at a birthday bash to mark two years of their involvement in shaping local health and wellbeing services.
The Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust (NHFT) Youth Advisory Board celebrated its second anniversary at a special event at Newland House in Northampton.
Formed in July 2022 by NHFT’s Participation and Co-production Team, the Youth Advisory Board (YAB) brings 13- to 25-year-olds together to support professionals with the development of the Trust’s services for children and young people in Northamptonshire.
This can range from providing valuable input into developing information and resources for service users, young people and their supporters to sitting on interview panels for the recruitment of new NHFT staff.
During the last 12 months alone, dozens of young people have been involved with more than 100 co-production activities and participated in 188 interviews. Most recently YAB members have been instrumental in developing NHFT’s iDiscover service, a new community built by young people for young people offering free activities, courses, workshops and resources for learning, growth and wellbeing.
There was a great turnout at the celebratory event from young people, who gathered to share stories and reflect on their collective achievements from the last two years.
Speaking to his peers at the birthday party, YAB member Ryan, aged 19, said: “I have had the fortune of being involved with YAB for some time and I have been able to see change. None of this could have been done without any of you. I love the atmosphere and how social it is and feeling like I’m part of a community. Happy second birthday to the YAB and here’s to many, many more!”
Leading the celebrations at the event were the NHFT Participation and Co-production Team, who were full of praise for the young people’s involvement in bringing about change through the YAB.
Speaking at the event, Sharon Robson, Assistant Director for Children and Young People’s Services, said: “I have to say that having watched the work all of you have put into the Youth Advisory Board, you have really built this up and made it what it is today. We have tried a number of times to get young people involved in participation and I think this is the first time we have really nailed it.
“We really do value our young people and we really do co-produce with you. We couldn’t have done any of this without your support and the support of this fabulous team. I just know we are going to go from strength to strength.”
Georgie Lomas, Participation and Co-production Lead, said: “The commitment and enthusiasm of our young people have been incredibly inspiring. Their contributions have not only shaped our services but have also promoted a community where their voices are genuinely heard and valued. It fills me with immense pride – I am truly proud to see the positive changes and the impact of their involvement over the past two years. We look forward to continuing this journey together and achieving even more in the future through participation and coproduction.”
Find out more about the Youth Advisory Board and other opportunities to get involved in children and young people’s participation and co-production at www.nhft.nhs.uk/participation