25/06/2013
I think first and foremost it is essential for me
to highlight that User Voice has been fundamentally instrumental in the growth
and skills that I have acquired over the past 2 years.
On saying that, the reason I joined User Voice was that I thought-
looking at the model they used- it is simplistic and very holistic. Subsequently,
it looked like the rewards that were potentially on offer for service providers
and service users were, from my experience, totally unimaginable.
With my background, having spent the best part of 15 years engulfed in
the criminal justice system, I was quite sceptical. Based on my own experiences
I was doubtful of just how much of an impact the service users that we engage with
could actually have on organisations such as London Probation, whose policies
have been built around red tape and bureaucracy.
How wrong could I have been; the changes that have taken place and
continue to take place on a daily basis are fruitful and appetizing.
More importantly, for me the energy that has been stirred up within the
service user community has been the most satisfying to watch; equipping
themselves with the adequate skills to become active citizens.
I have worked with well over a hundred service users; lots of them have
successfully completed their orders for the first time, lots more have moved on
to gainful employment and lots continue to work voluntarily on councils as
members that represent some of the most marginalized groups of people in the
country. Now that is what it is about for me.
Change can and will take place if we all work together hard enough for
it.
"Truth is on the side of the oppressed" - Malcolm X.
