Lived Experience Quality Assurance Lead
Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS Foundation TrustOur Vision is to provide the best mental health, learning disability, autism and community based services for the populations we serve.
As an integrated mental health, learning disability and community Trust, Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust provides a range of services including:
• Primary and secondary mental health care for children and adults including specialist inpatient child and adolescent mental health provision, perinatal mental health, forensic services including low and medium secure care.
• Specialist community support for children and adults with learning disabilities and autism, including intensive support.
• Community physical health and well-being services for children and adults.
The Trust was first established in 2002 and employs approximately 7,000 staff who provide care from more than 400 sites. The organisation offers opportunities for medics, mental health and general nurses, allied health professionals, psychology, administration and clerical staff, apprentices and volunteers.
Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust supports flexible working, we believe that a positive work/life balance benefits NHS employees through improved health and wellbeing. We would consider working patterns such as; term time, part time, compressed hours, home/remote working, and flexi-time.
For more information visit our website via Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS FT.
Please note that further communication from Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust (LSCft) will normally be to the email address given on the application form. You should also ensure that email addresses and telephone numbers are provided for your referees, to enable LSCft to contact them.
Job overview
This advert may close earlier than date published due to the high volume of applications.
Water Meadow View is a new mental health inpatient unit for adults who have learning disabilities, which is due to open in Winter 2025 on our site in Whittingham, Preston. As we prepare to open this unit, we have a brand new and exciting opportunity for a Lived Experience Quality Assurance Lead to join us and support the Multi-Disciplinary Team to deliver outstanding person-centred care.
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This role will play a vital part in ensuring that the voices of people who use our service are embedded in everything we do.
One of the Trust's aims is to deliver the best possible care to our patients, and this new inpatient unit will do just that. Water Meadow View will offer clinical excellence, support, and safety, with patient-centred care at its heart.
The Lived Experience Quality Assurance Lead will be responsible for incorporating the insights and perspectives of individuals with lived experience into quality assurance (QA) processes. This role focuses on ensuring that Water Meadow View is developed and improved through the direct input of people who have first-hand experience of using the service. The role requires a deep commitment to co-production, inclusion, and continual improvement.
Working for our organisation
Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust provides a range of services including secondary mental health care across this area. Specialist provision comprises inpatient child and adolescent mental health services, perinatal mental health and forensic services including low and medium secure care.
The Trust also provides a range of physical health and well-being services in the community alongside a range of partners in the Lancashire, Cumbria and Sefton area.
Lancashire & South Cumbria Foundation Trust encourages flexible working, we believe that a positive work/life balance benefits NHS employees through improved health and wellbeing. We would consider working patterns such as; term time, part time, compressed hours, flexi-time and career breaks. We encourage applicants to state clearly on their application forms this request and discuss these options at interview.
For more information please visit our website via Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS FT.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
This role requires a person with lived experience of learning disability (as a service user, family member, direct support staff (PA)) with up-to-date knowledge of health policy and legislation applicable for learning disabilities and mental health inpatient services and experience of working together with the learning disability community and/or providers to reduce barriers to healthcare.
The post holder will be responsible for the leadership of co-produced quality improvement projects to ensure delivery of a high-quality specialist inpatient mental health service, meeting the complex and diverse needs of the learning disability population. Opportunities for line management support will be met by the service; however, the leadership of quality improvement projects will be the responsibility of this post-holder.
The key responsibilities of this role are:
- To lead quality assurance processes by integrating feedback and insights from individuals with lived experience.
- Act as a voice for individuals with Learning Disabilities, ensuring their perspectives shape service development and improvement.
- Promote a culture that values lived experience as a critical component of service improvement.
- Conduct quality assurance activities, including audits, service evaluations, observations and feedback collection.
- Work collaboratively with service users, families, and staff to co-produce improvements.
- Advocate for service user’s rights, dignity and high- quality care within Water Meadow View.
- Support training and awareness initiatives to enhance staff understanding of lived experience.
- To be an expert role model and provide leadership within Water Meadow View by ensuring systems are in place to share knowledge, expertise and examples of good practice.
- Support the governance and duty of care to safeguarding others by acting in accordance with Trust policy and procedures.
- Provide leadership to Peer facilitators working on the unit.
For more details on this vacancy please review the attached job description and person specification
Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Please be aware, the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) when submitting an application is monitored and if you have used AI to generate an application, you are required to declare this on your application form. Failure to do so, may result in your application being withdrawn.
We want to highlight the importance of integrity and authenticity in your application form, and ask you to use AI tools responsibly to ensure your application form is a true reflection of your skills, knowledge and experiences.
We are looking for you to demonstrate personal experiences of how you meet the essential criteria and as an NHS Employer, we value authenticity and honesty.
Please consider that AI-generated content may lack specificity and fail to address key criteria outlined in the job description providing impersonal and inaccurate information.
Please ensure that you read the person specification attached below as your application will be measured against this document.
Applications from job share partners are welcome and other forms of flexible working will be considered for all posts.
For all posts which require a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check please be aware of the Disclosure and Barring Service Code of Practice, a copy of which is available by logging on to the DBS website. If the post is subject to DBS disclosure, a charge will be made to the successful candidate(s).
You are advised to consider applying for LSCft vacancies as soon as possible as in some instances vacancies are closed as soon as a sufficient number of applications have been received. If you are not invited to interview within three weeks of the closing date then please assume that on this occasion you have been unsuccessful, as it is not possible to contact all unsuccessful candidates.
LSCft is committed to celebrating difference as an asset and we know that recruiting talent from diverse backgrounds helps to create a more flexible, creative and effective workforce. We actively challenge discrimination and welcome applications from people regardless of age, disability (particularly those with experience of accessing or caring for someone who has accessed mental health or learning disability services), ethnicity, gender, religion or belief or sexual orientation. Our goal is for the Trust to be truly representative of the communities we serve so we are particularly keen to receive applications from people in under-represented groups. If there is anything you’d like to discuss in relation to your application then please ask.