Our Purpose

Our journey began by examining our own support organisation, where we focused on creating a strategy that placed lived experience at the core of its mission. Once we had established this internal foundation, we expanded our vision to look beyond the organisation, recognising that with the right tools, we could amplify our voices so that the impact of lived experience can drive meaningful change. Through this process, we discovered that the voices of our community are essential to shaping that change, as they hold the key to transformative solutions. This report outlines both the work carried out within our support organisation and the growth and development of our collective as we continue to empower our community.

Together with Herring House Trust we helped shape a strategy of co-production with the aim of giving people the opportunity to work collectively to plan, develop, monitor and evaluate services so they are influenced by the people with the experience. At all times we seek to find ways to ensure we can work together with equity and shared values.

At the heart of our Collective is a team of Experts by Experience, who bring their personal understanding of homelessness and have been involved in shaping the project from the start. They have actively recruited new members and are now sharing their collective experience with other organisations in the town. While they focus on working with those who have lived experience, they are open to partnering with a wide range of organisations, not just those focused on homelessness, to help bring about positive change in the community.