It’s Co-Production Week 2026!
29 June – 3 July 2026 is Co-Production Week, an opportunity to celebrate the power of working together to design services with people, not simply for them.
This year’s theme, Care Equity, reminds us that everyone should have equal opportunity to influence the services they use, regardless of their background, identity or circumstances. Co-production helps make that possible by ensuring that lived experience sits alongside professional expertise from the very beginning.
Co-Production across York
At York CVS, we’re proud to champion co-production across health and social care.
Working alongside partners and communities, we’re helping ensure that people with lived experience shape the future of mental health support across the city.
Current areas of work include:
- Supporting the development of York’s three Mental Health Hubs.
- Working with neurodivergent communities to improve services and shape funding opportunities.
- Making mental health services more inclusive by listening to voices that are often unheard.
- Creating opportunities for people with lived experience to influence recruitment, service design and decision making.
What is Co-production?
Co-production is an equal partnership between people with lived experience and the organisations delivering services.
Rather than asking people for feedback once decisions have already been made, co-production involves people throughout the entire process – from identifying problems and designing solutions to delivering and improving services.
Everyone brings valuable knowledge, skills and experiences to the table. When those perspectives are treated equally, services become more inclusive, accessible and effective.
Update from your Co-Production Champion Ben Hutchinson
Hub 3 is starting to feel real
We’ve been quietly building relationships in the east of the city, chatting to people, spotting local gems, and finding out what a wellbeing hub could really mean there. A co‑design team is being recruited right now, and early planning is being shaped directly by people with lived experience. It’s community‑led from the ground up, exactly as it should be.
“It’s Co-Production Week, the sun is doing its best to turn us all into puddles, and I’ve just surfaced from a very full, very brilliant few months. Here’s what’s been happening in the world of co‑production while I’ve been out and about, sweating through it:”
Young people, loud and clear
We supported three workshops with young people to gather their thoughts, hopes, and honest feedback about mental health. That insight is now feeding straight into how the hubs can better support children and young people. And we’re not stopping there. We’re also gearing up for Shape York’s Mental Health Action Plan, a hands-on event where young people can directly influence what happens next.
Getting out there, nationally and locally
We’ve been telling the York co‑production story far and wide. I took it to the AMHP Members’ Meeting, the NDTi Online Festival, and the York Health and Care Collaborative. But a special highlight was presenting to NHS England, and I have to give a massive shoutout here. Jos absolutely owned that one, delivering the bulk of the presentation to a national audience and speaking powerfully about the difference co‑production makes when it’s done with real heart. Watching her hold that room and share our learning so brilliantly was a proud moment.
Fresh faces and shared power
Six new people with lived experience have stepped forward to get involved in future projects, and we’ve continued to have lived experience on interview panels wherever possible. We also worked with neurodivergent community members to co‑produce the language for a grants fund, proving yet again that small words carry big meaning.
Who is Ben Hutchinson?
As York CVS’ Co-Production Champion, Ben brings both professional experience and lived experience of mental health services.
“Coming from lived experience with mental health issues myself, I’m really passionate about putting people at the heart of designing and implementing services that work for the people who use them. For too long, services have tried to put square pegs in square holes, and that’s not how the world works, let alone mental health services!
I aim to offer a safe and non-judgmental space for anyone who wants to share their thoughts and feelings about the services they use. No problem is too small to share. Every voice matters.
I truly believe co-production is the way forward in designing and implementing services, but there can be challenges and it’s important to address those. In life, as in co-production, we don’t always agree on things, and that’s ok. Healthy debate and discussion moves us forward, it gets us thinking about different points of view, and we must respect everyone’s point of view, however much that differs from our own.”
There are lots of ways to take part in co-production across York, from Conversation Cafés and lived experience panels to helping shape new services and projects.
If you’d like to hear about future opportunities, sign up to receive our monthly Co-production Newsletter and become part of a growing network helping shape the future of health and social care in York.
This Co-production Week let’s continue putting people at the heart of decisions that affect their lives.
