If not now, when? - Social Renewal Advisory Board report: January 2021

Annex B - Lived Experience At The Heart

In ensuring that lived experience was right at the heart of discussions on social renewal, the Board developed a programme of engagement to ensure people and communities (of place and of interest) and organisations supporting people affected by the issues can have their say and contribute their ideas. This has consisted of four strands which are outlined below. A full report, containing summaries of all these different elements, is available here.

1. Poverty Truth Commission

We have consulted with the Poverty Truth Commissions who represent four local authority areas. The groups bring together those with lived experience of poverty and inequality with local decision-makers in order to effect change. The questions focused on what impact lockdown had on their lives, the struggles and positive changes and also what their ambitions were for a good life post-Covid. The responses, which were compiled into a report and shared with the Board, helped confirm that the issues being considered by the circles were the same as those people were experiencing generally.

2. Community Listening Events

We supported Community Listening Events undertaken in 31 local authorities. These offered local people a chance to reflect on what had changed for them, how lockdown had affected their lives and what their priorities were for a 'good life' post-Covid-19, which could be incorporated into the thinking of the Board.

3. Deep Dive Events

We commissioned a series of "Deep Dive" events with groups who have been disproportionately affected by Covid-19 - disabled people, minority ethnic communities, older people, women, and young people. Unfortunately, capacity issues within the commissioned organisation meant that the minority ethnic Deep Dives weren't able to progress as planned. We were required to use other evidence instead, including the two sets of recommendations from the Expert Reference Group on Covid-19 and Ethnicity and reports such as The Impacts Of Covid-19 On Equality In Scotland and Scotland's Wellbeing: The Impact of COVID-19 | National Performance Framework. The remaining Deep Dives were able to take place as planned and these have informed the development of the Calls to Action emerging from the policy circles.

4. Call for Ideas

This open call asked national organisations and local community groups for their policy ideas, proposals and solutions on how to renew post-Covid. It was also a further opportunity to gather evidence about the impacts on the pandemic. The response to Covid-19 saw unparalleled partnership working across groups to keep people safe, happy and fed. The Board wanted to make the most of this learning, which was done at pace and delivered tangible outcomes in areas where it had been more difficult to make progress previously.