When designing services, working with families, assessing, planning, doing, reviewing, measuring impact. When we talk to our services and teams. Where’s the evidence of voice? Is it meaningful? Is it tokenistic? Is it representative? How have we acted upon it to make people’s lives better? And how do those we listen to feel about it? Was it worth it? Did it make the difference they were seeking? Did they feel valued and respected?
Understanding and acting upon the lived experiences, views, wishes and feelings of those we work with is fundamental to good practice. We’re in the business of building positive relationships, so listening without prejudice is a pretty important skill to have and encourage in others. Even if what we hear is unpalatable, hard to process, not possible, or contradicts our own values or beliefs. What matters is how we deal with conflicting views, between ‘professionals’, children and their families. What is our bottom line to stop listening and direct unwanted intervention?
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