Disabled peoples’ groups say “nothing about us without us”. This means two important things to the NHS:

• People should make choices about their own life, healthcare and support. We call this empowerment.
• People with a learning disability, autistic people and family carers, should be involved in the design of good quality services. There are different levels of involvement, from asking people for feedback through to coproduction. By coproduction we mean that staff work closely with people to design and produce a solution or service together.

Things we should do to give people more power

Use easy, everyday words to talk about people. Read the words we use to talk about people.

Listen to people:

• In meetings – read making meetings accessible.
• Employ people with a learning disability, autism or both and family carers.
• Through feedback, concerns and complaints. There is a project called Ask Listen Do which is making feedback, concerns and complaints easier for people with a autistic people, people with a learning disability and family carers.

The law

The law says that the NHS must involve people in developing its services and when they are making big changes to services. NHS England has written guidance about this:

• Guidance for ICSs and NHS England on meeting their duties.
• Other tools and resources to support involvement.

Where can I find out more?

• Watch a video on why it’s important to hear people’s voices in developing services – Getting involved at NHS England.
• Easy read article – More power to people with a learning disability.
• Academic article (not easy read) – Shifting the balance of power.
• Read what we think coproduction means in transforming care.
• Watch a video – What is coproduction?
• Watch videos about what empowerment means to people – from the Transforming Care Empowerment Steering Group.