About the project
We are looking for parent volunteers who are happy to share their lived experienced, on a variety of themes who could bring value and knowledge to a meeting, discussion and/or workshop. We know that the parents’ voice can be powerful, so Southend City Council and SAVS want to support parents to share their lived experience and be part of meaningful discussions which can bring about positive change in Southend and in their community.
If you live in Southend, pregnant and/or an existing parent with a child or children aged 0-11, this opportunity could be for you! The process starts with completing an expression of interest form where we capture your subject interests and availability.
As opportunities become available, we reach out to parents on this list, and once you are matched with an opportunity, we ask you to enrol as a SAVS volunteer. Sessions are designed to be supportive, accessible and meaningful, your time is important to us.
Ways our Parent Voice Ambassadors have been getting involved
Existing Spaces, Meetings and Forums
Independent Advisory Group for Southend Police
Hosted by Southend Police, the IAG for Southend is an Independent Advisory Group, a community-based body that works with Essex Police to provide independent advice on policing matters in the Southend area. Parent Voice Ambassadors can be invited to sit in this space to bring their community based knowledge up for discussion.
Co-production in the City
Hosted by SAVS, this community-based meeting is themed around Health and Social Care. The opportunity is to share lived experience and opportunities for support, with guest speakers able to connect and learn from the meeting members to understand a community need.
Tackling Poverty Forum
Hosted by Southend City Council, this community-based forum brings connection and up-to-date information to the attention of the hosts, which is fed back to the Tackling Poverty Strategy Team. In turn, this team provides feedback on their work through this forum. Both spaces support the creation of the Southend Cost of Living Booklet, which is produced annually.
Specialist Themed Workshops
Early Help Strategy Development
Hosted by the Safeguarding Children Partnership (SSCP), our project was approached to bring a selection of Parent Voice Ambassadors together for a series of workshops to understand what Early Help means to them. For them to understand the current delivery offer and how their lived experience supports improvement and change. The information collected will directly feed into future development work. Our invitation will remain open should partners connected to this work wish to reconnect with our parents.
Health Protection Conversations – Vaccinations
Hosted by Southend City Council (Health Protection Operations), our project was approached to bring a selection of Parent Voice Ambassadors together for a series of workshops to discuss vaccination uptake in Southend. It was important to understand their experience and productively discuss the decline in uptake across Southend and the potential implications for our communities. Working with PVA’s this team wanted to understand how parents locate trusted and factual information, what worries them and how they make informed decisions about protecting their children from vaccine-preventable disease. Working together, this group are looking to create an accessible and informative landing page to support both residents and professionals.
National Child Measurement Programme
Hosted by Southend City Council (Health Improvement Practitioner Specialist), our project was approached to bring parents together to look through the paperwork and interactions that happen between primary schools, SCC and parents. What needs to be delivered nationally, and the approach to deliver this programme in Southend. Parents will be able to share their experience of this process, working together to see how the approach could be adapted.
Southend SEND Local Offer
Hosted by Southend City Council (Southend SEND Local Offer), our project was approached to bring parents who either have experience of navigating Southend’s SEND Local offer or have an interest in this topic. Working with parents, they have been looking at the information pages on the SEND Local Offer channel of the Livewell Southend website, with a particular focus on the Early Years section, discussing the information there, how it is presented, if anything is missing, and whether the pathways and process are clear and does the information connects with its audience helpfully and clearly.
Southend Supports Breastfeeding
Hosted by Southend City Council (Specialist Health Visitor for Infant Feeding) and SAVS, this formally brings together parents who are breastfeeding or have been on a breastfeeding journey. Discuss the project aims and campaigns, support community events and promote this project to their communities. This project aims to connect with businesses and organisations to support the messaging that breastfeeding families have safe and supported spaces in Southend.
Consultations, Feedback and Surveys
Southend New Local Plan
This was an opportunity to create a couple of information sessions where parents had a focused space where they could ask questions about the consultation and how they could navigate the online resources and respond to a variety of questions about proposed ideas and suggested changes for Southend.
Big Sparks Panel Member
As this community funding opportunity moves through Southend’s localities, parents have been asked if they would like to represent their locality and become a panel member, to review applications, discuss with others and agree on the ones that have met the application criteria. Panel members will also be asked to support the events and meetings associated with big sparks in this location.
Monthly Meet-up – Bringing the Parent Voice Ambassadors Together
This is our projects opportunity to bring the parents together, to talk about the spaces they have been sitting in, how this work is developing, the outcomes and challenges. It also allows us to talk in more detail about the new opportunities coming up and gauge interest in who would like to attend. This is also seen as an ambassador role, that these parents will feel pride in the work they are doing, that they will champion the information that is shared with them to their community spaces and networks.
Project Aims
- Champion the parent voice – Create a space where a parent’s voice and lived experience can be part of the conversation
- Help to shape services – The partnership will work to create an opportunity to shape services, support a delivery, and make information more accessible
- Provide insight about what works well – By collecting feedback from parents and hosts, we can get real insight into the formats that work well
- Highlight the impact of lived experience – Case studies will showcase how well this works, and that other services and departments will also embrace engagement with parents
Southend’s Parent Voice recognises that they are not the only space in Southend that engages with parents and residents in this way. We want to promote the collective message that the most effective way to create and deliver services is to engage in conversation with the people using them.
Call Out to Southend’s communities and partners
We are looking for opportunities for our PVAs to work with you! So if you are creating something new, refreshing something existing or looking for feedback, then please do get in touch. We would love to explore these opportunities with you. We understand this work will have limitations, and managing expectations for all involved is important, but remembering that the conversations and learning are key to future progress.
Project Reflection on Developments
As each parent’s lived experience is unique, this has brought some deeper insight to conversations; alongside this, we also aim to capture feedback from both the parents and the hosts.
This information has shown us that preparation, planning, clear structure and allowing enough time is key to making the most of an opportunity. That flexibility, accessibility and understanding that there may be limitations to what an opportunity can achieve is also very important. Having the opportunity to work together is something we can all celebrate, and our case studies will showcase this.
