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Making Peer Practical Together: update and podcast!

12 participants from nine organisations recently celebrated being part of Making Peer Practical but it’s just the beginning…

At Scottish Recovery Network, we believe in the strength of community, connection and shared learning. Our Making Peer Practical Development Programme brings people from services and organisations across sectors together. As a group they work towards planning and implementing their peer support ideas. Our goal with this programme is to support participants to integrate peer support in a meaningful and sustainable way. We focus on five key areas:

  • Intentional network building ​
  • Supportive local facilitation​
  • Strategic organisational change ​
  • Mentorship​
  • Developing regional leaders

“Inspiring – energising – motivating”

Due to small numbers and the flexibility of peer support we were able to create a supportive community. All focused on improving and expanding peer support practices. We’re delighted to work with a range of participants from different organisations and services. Renfrewshire Health and Social Care Partnership’s CIRCLE – recovery hub; Change Mental Health Suicide Bereavement Support and Wheatley Group ARBD Service. Participants also came from NHS Lothian Bereavement Service and Mental Health Network Greater Glasgow. University of Strathclyde Peer Wellbeing Project and Specialist Resource Solutions took part. Health Improvement from Clackmannanshire and Stirling Health and Social Care Partnership were also onboard.

Iona McCann, Associate Director, Art in Healthcare, gives a participant’s perspective,

We’d had some money from the ALLIANCE Scotland Self Management Fund to pilot some different approaches to how we might provide more support within our workshops, whether that was through our current staff and training, or working in partnership with other organisations. Early last year, we started to learn more about peer work and there was a bit of a light bulb moment of, this is the gap, I think.

Iona McCann, Participant, Making Peer Practical

What’s next?

We’ll be checking in with the participants over the next few months. Exploring how they’ve put their learning into practice and the impact it is having. Watch this space (newsletter) for updates on their progress as we share their powerful examples of Peer Support in Action!

If you want to know more about peer support and access some great free resources check our www.PeerRecoveryHub.Net

Note. We’ve piloted using Generative AI to help us create the written copy for this feature. This process includes a commitment to inputting, reviewing and editing the content before publication. We value authenticity and all details shared are true at the time of publishing. Quotes from participants are verbatim.