LEAG becomes LEAN!
Our network for domestic abuse survivors across Herefordshire and Worcestershire has undergone a rebrand to make it clearer that participation is both flexible and inclusive.
The Lived Experience Advisory Group (LEAG) will now be known as the Lived Experience Advisory Network (LEAN). This name change makes it clearer that we have an accessible approach, ensuring that individuals can engage at a level that suits their circumstances.
The LEAN has now been active for 2 years, with another year of projects being planned that will involve the network of over 40 survivors of domestic abuse in opportunities to shape services and policies across Herefordshire and Worcestershire.
Every survey, interview or group session is reported back to decision-makers so that survivor voices and views are heard. The LEAN is embedded in the way that agencies work in both counties, and the activities that we are using to engage and enable participation is expanding all the time – surveys, interviews, focus groups, poetry, audio clips, testimonies, and opportunities for creative workshops are all now part of the way that we work.
We want to ensure that everyone who is already involved – and those that may be thinking about it – understand that this is not a group that people have to join and attend on a regular basis. We appreciate everyone’s commitment to the network, often putting aside their own time to attend group sessions or record audio clips and we want to recognise that survivors have busy lives and cannot always be available for every project – or it may be that the project does not always resonate with them and their experience. By renaming this as a ‘network’ our aim is to convey that we are flexible and do not require constant participation to be involved. Whilst it is a small change on paper, it is our hope that this will help others to better understand how it works and encourage them to join. LEAN is committed to ensuring that survivors can share their perspectives in a way that feels comfortable and empowering, making a real impact on the development of domestic abuse services. We look forward to helping to build lasting change together as we move forward with the Lived Experience Advisory Network.
To become a member of the LEAN, or to find out more, please email yourvoice@wmwa.org.uk