By Corin Look, Partnership and Co-production Coordinator at Crisis
Thanks to the Berkeley Foundation’s support, Crisis has been able to establish a brand-new role in Brent: Co-production and Partnership Co-ordinator. This dedicated post is helping us embed the insight, ideas, and leadership of people with lived experience of homelessness into the borough’s long-term mission to end homelessness for good.
What co-production really means
Co-production starts from a simple truth: people with lived experience know what needs to change. Their insight, resilience and creativity are essential to designing solutions that actually work.
Co-production also recognises that frontline staff hold expertise that is just as valuable as organisational leadership, and that people experiencing homelessness must be supported to influence the decisions that shape their lives.
Co-production in action: Brent’s journey
We began by learning from what already exists, and from this we developed the idea for a new peer-led group: Voices for Homeless.
Across two days, members built trust, explored the barriers people face in Brent, and started identifying actions that could drive change. Space was created both to speak openly about challenges and to plan what’s possible.
The group has already begun shaping key areas of local policy and practice, from feeding into Brent Council’s Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy to contributing to new initiatives, creating training materials, and developing their own projects.
A shared commitment to co-production
Crisis is committed to co-production being a driving force in ending homelessness. Berkeley Foundation’s investment has made this possible - strengthening our advocacy, amplifying the voice of lived experience, and supporting meaningful change across Brent.
We are already seeing progress: co-production now features prominently in Brent Council’s new Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy, and Adult Social Care is holding regular co-production meetings.
When people with lived experience shape services and policies, we move closer to systems that are truly person-centred and a future where homelessness can be ended for everyone.
View the full blog on the Crisis website.