Young People's Participation

Sophie Davies 

(she/her)

People Participation Lead for Suffolk Children, Families and Young People’s Services

Hi, my name is Sophie and I have been working as a People Participation Lead since September 2020. Before this I was working as a co-ordinator and tutor for the Recovery College and completing my masters in Psychology. I came into this role as I had previously used services for my own mental health with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and wanted to use these experiences to try and support others. This role has given me the opportunity to work alongside young people and create a safe, supportive and inclusive space to share their thoughts, experiences and ideas which has led to some great and positive changes to the service. When I’m not at work I love going to gigs and playing the drums.

Andrea Bland

(she/her)

People Participation Co-ordinator for Norfolk and Waveney Children, Families and Young People’s Services

Hi, I’m Andrea. I became a People Participation Co-ordinator in August 2022 and chose the role as I have supported my son from a young age through his mental health journey and have experience of living with my own mental health challenges. My favourite part of the job is empowering people to recognise their ideas are valuable and sharing them can help others. I wish I’d have been involved more when my son was younger so I’m also passionate about parents and carers voices being heard. In my spare time I like going for long walks.

Donna Wilson

People Participation Champion

Hi, my name is Donna and I have been in my role as a People Participation Champion since July 2023. I previously studied social work and have been employed in the substance misuse arena.

My passion, however, is supporting and empowering young people with the various challenges they are faced with in today's world.

I am a single mother and have experienced my own mental health difficulties over the past 20 years, including being bereaved by suicide on three occasions.

Our mental health permeates every aspect of our lives, and I am committed to ensuring that the service on offer meets the needs of the young people accessing it and their parents and carers. I cherish this role and the opportunity to work with young people, ensuring their ideas and feedback have a voice.

Outside of work I enjoy listening to music, dancing, and socialising. 

Would you like to be involved in improving our mental health services for yourself and others? Your voice deserves to be heard!

Particip8! are a group of people with a personal interest in mental health for young people and a passion for improving mental health services.

Whether you’d prefer to be part of a group, have one-to-one sessions, or share your ideas and experience by email, Whatsapp or phone, we would love for you to join us.

You can be involved as little or as much as you would like and with the things that are important to you.

• Using lived experience, we have led on projects such as:
• The language of letters and ensuring these are young person and carer friendly
• Interviewing staff
• Sharing our experience of crisis services
• Art projects
• Development of educational courses and many more.

To find out more, email particip8@nsft.nhs.uk. 

Experiences of Particip8!

Grace from Particip8! has shared her experience of participation and Particip8! in particular. You can read  Grace's Particip8 Participation Story [pdf] 77KB

Particip8! podcasts

Our Particip8! group have made a range of podcasts for the Mental Health and You Podcast. Below are some links directly to episodes available on Spotify and other platforms: 

• Experiences of Participation — Today the group share why they got involved in participation, what their experiences have been like and how you can get involved with Particip8! and participation.
• The Mental Health Music Takeover — This week the group share their own experiences of how music has supported them through difficult times and the launch of the Mental Health Music Takeover Playlist.
• Participation at NSFT — This episode focuses both on experiences of services and getting involved with Participation through Particip8! If you're interested in learning more about getting involved, it's a great place to start to learn more. 
• Self-esteem and belonging — This week the group discuss what self-esteem is, the effects school can have on self-esteem, the difficulty of comparison and expectations, social media and more.
• Disabilities and mental health — This week the group discuss mental health and disability, sharing the effects that different types of disabilities can have on mental health, as well as some misconceptions of how they can affect each other.
• Social media and mental health — In this episode the group discuss their personal experiences of social media, how it's effected/effecting their mental health as well as some top tips on how to deal with social media.
• Living with Anxiety — In this episode the group share their experiences of living with anxiety and ways they've learnt to manage and live with it.