Led by lived experience
We support people in England and South Wales who are autistic, have learning disabilities, mental health conditions, physical disabilities or other complex needs.
Our support is person-centred. This means that our support is driven by people, and what they want for their life, no matter what their support needs are.
A person-centred organisation
We are person-centred through and through.
People we support don’t just have a say in how they are supported in their service: they also have a say in how the organisation as a whole supports people. They do this by taking part in our People’s Forum, working as Quality Checkers, and helping us interview and train new staff.
About The People’s Forum
Our People’s Forum is a fundamental part of how we work at United Response.
People we support are chosen to represent their local area in forum meetings. They share the views and experiences of other people from their area, so everyone gets heard.
The insights from forum meetings help us to shape our support and make sure it’s always led by lived experience.
If you’d like more information about getting involved, please contact peoplesforum@unitedresponse.org.uk.
About our Quality Checkers
Our Quality Checkers visit people supported by United Response to check how they are being supported and to find out if people are happy with the support they are receiving. Findings are reported back to service managers.
All of our Quality Checkers are people who have experience of using the kind of service United Response offers. As experts by experience, they provide us with important insights into how we can provide the very best support for people.
We started working with Quality Checkers in 2007, and since then, they have completed over 600 audits.
Interviewing, training and consulting work
It’s also really important to us at United Response that people we support have a say about who supports them, and contribute to making sure that our staff are the best they can be.
We have built a talented panel of consultants who make sure that our information, media and training is accessible and good quality. They’re called UR Consultants: visit their webpage for more information.
About our Media Contributors
Finally, we are really pleased to work with a team of talented writers and creatives who submit content for use across our communications channels. Each creative we work with is autistic, or has a learning disability or mental health need. Their work is vital in ensuring lived experience sits at the heart of our communications.