How did you first get involved in improvement, and what has been your journey since then?

I pause for a second when I read the word improvement. Coming from a third sector background it’s not language that resonates with me because it’s never been the starting point. Since I started managing the delivery and development of support programmes, I’ve always started with the outcomes.

Understanding where you are, what you’re doing and where you want to be are all prerequisites before looking at what changes and improvement needs to be made.

If we reframe the question slightly to how long I have been making changes based on outcomes, that started in my first role managing an outreach and support service for people affected by spinal cord injury.

I’ve moved around several roles in different charities over the last 10 years, the focus on the outcomes for the people we support have very much remained the focus. Understanding how to improve those outcomes and also any change in need has always been a priority.

What most inspires you professionally?

One of the biggest oxymorons in society is how aware we are of the things that don’t work and yet how much our discomfort with change stops us from doing anything about it.

For me, the people who are the true innovators are people who look to make system change within areas where it’s needed rather than accept the status quo.

Changemakers with a vision and the courage to act on that vision are those that inspire me.

Can you share a hard-won lesson you’ve learnt about what makes for a successful (or unsuccessful) improvement project?

For so many people, me included, the thing that hurts the most is taking damage to your ego. I like to think I’m moving away from that and accepting that I don’t have all the answers even within spaces where I have most experience.

When I set up my social enterprise last year, I started out with something that I knew worked in wheelchair skills and an underserved population of wheelchair users.

I knew that teaching wheelchair skills had the potential to have a massive impact on people’s lives.

When I started teaching wheelchair skills in schools, I had an idea that I’d be able to drop into schools and teach a wheelchair skills session then that would be the job done. It didn’t quite work out that way.

While I could see that there were some really positive outcomes from the wheelchair skills sessions I was teaching, it was obvious that something more in depth was needed in terms of training.

Only in admitting, despite my 15 years of experience in teaching wheelchair skills, that I didn’t have all the answers straight off the bat, was I able to take a step back and say to the children, their parents, and teachers ‘how can we make this work for you?’.

What change could we make that would do most to embed continuous improvement in health and care?

Coproduction is terminology that is overused and broadly speaking not fully understood. All the times that I’ve seen coproduction, or however else it might be branded, it’s never putting everyone on an equal footing. Ensuring that everyone has an equal voice in the discussion is a fundamental part of coproduction.

It’s for this reason that health and care services need to better understand how they can involve lived experience in their learning and improvement.

There are a few uncomfortable truths that need to be accepted before this can happen:

1. You’re not already doing it
2. It’s not going to be cheap
3. It’s not going to be easy

Understanding the need to work differently in the future is the only way that continuous improvement can happen.

Why did you join Q?

Throughout my 16 years of using a wheelchair and 10 years working in third sector I’ve worked with the health and care sector in several capacities, but there’s still so much that I don’t know.

After setting up my own social enterprise last year, I knew that I needed to scope out how this service that I knew had the potential to make positive change could fit with the NHS. When I came across Q, I saw other people that wanted to make change and held similar values and vision to me.

What new connections have you made as a result of joining the Q community – and what have you learnt so far?

Every conversation that I’ve had with people from Q has been reaffirming in that my idea resonates with people and I can communicate the vision effectively.

A lot of the time people don’t know who I should connect with and when I have been connected with people from various departments across the NHS it hasn’t led to anything. This in itself has been valuable learning.

If what I have is not something that fits with the NHS now then that is useful to know. I don’t want to spend all my time trying to fit a round shape in a square hole. That’s not going to be helpful in any way, least of all for my sanity.

That doesn’t mean that I’m giving up. It means that my focus, at least in the first instance, will be on building my social enterprise outside of the NHS. I do believe that the outcomes form wheelchair skills and how they are a foundation for healthy living. It’s for this reason that I will continue working with Q to explore opportunities in how we can make this work.

Can you tell us about something you’re currently working on that Q members might be able to get involved with?

I’m going to hold up my hands and say that I don’t have all the answers and I’m okay with that. What I do have however is questions. I have questions and a willingness to talk.

That’s why late last year, I set up a Q Special Interest Group (SIG) for the third sector. I want it to be a space for those people who work in the third sector to come together and share experiences and ideas on how they have and how we could work with the health and care sector.

Sign up to the ‘Third sector’ SIG for updates.

Want to learn more about Pete’s work? Get in touch.