This final and summative evaluation of the VOICES programme in Stoke-on-Trent highlights that lived experience was at the centre of systems change and the pivotal role of Expert Citizens in shaping, delivering, and evaluating services for people facing multiple disadvantage.
Developed as an eight-year partnership (2014–2022), the report demonstrates how people with lived experience moved beyond participation to become leaders, co-producers and system influencers. Expert Citizens were embedded throughout the programme—as evaluation partners, peer researchers, trainers, and advisors—bringing critical insight, challenge and credibility to both frontline practice and strategic decision-making. Initiatives such as Get Talking and co-produced research enabled lived experience to directly inform findings, validate analysis, and shape recommendations for long-term systems change.
The report evidences how this approach contributed to meaningful impact across three priority areas: improving fair access to services, a
