Our Lives, Our Leadership at Your Voice Counts

The Your Voice Counts Our Lives, Our Leadership project is now up and running thanks to funding from the National Lottery Community Fund and the team is looking forward to raising awareness of co-production and the power of lived experience by sharing their news and learning throughout the project.

Meet the team

Meet Oli

I’m really excited to be joining Your Voice Counts and the Our Lives, Our Leadership project. The project will see me work with our Lived Experience Leads Ashton and Melissa to help everyone involved with Your Voice Counts put the opinions, needs and priorities of people with lived experience at the heart of service design and delivery.

We want to make sure the leadership of people with lived experience is strong, supported and visible right through everything we do, making not just our services but the way we work accessible and inclusive to our community. As a disabled person I understand how important this is and am looking forward to making a difference to others through this role.

Outside of work I love to bake and cook. I have three children and a pet rabbit called Flower.

Meet Ashton

I am excited to have recently started in my role as the Mental Health Lived Experience Lead within the Our Lives, Our Leadership project at Your Voice Counts. I feel really lucky that I will have the opportunity to be part of something new in this position – co-production is something that is so important, and I am looking forward to focusing on and developing this alongside my team. In my previous jobs I have worked with unpaid carers, care experienced young people, and individuals with mental health issues and learning disabilities. Involvement work is always something I have been passionate about, however this is the first time that it is the central focus of my job and I am looking forward to giving it the time and commitment that it deserves.

Outside of work I enjoy going on walks in nature, playing board games and watching crime dramas!

Meet Melissa

I’m really excited to be starting out in my new job role as the Learning Disabilities and Autism Lived Experience Lead within the Our Lives, Our Leadership project. I’m really looking forward to being a part of a bigger, better change for people and to also help shape things for the future.

I feel very lucky and privileged to be in this new role and will do my best and work really hard to make the most inclusion for other people and share my lived experiences, good and bad, to help others by being very open and honest.

In my previous experience I have been a volunteer for childcare and a volunteer support worker supporting teenagers and young adults with autism and learning disabilities. Your

Voice Counts was my first official job and paid role so this means a lot to me. Helping to aid and support people is a passion of mine as we are all people and it’s all about seeing people for who they are and not just their label.

Outside of work I enjoy reading, listening to music, singing and dancing (just for fun though in the house) and watching the TV.

Look out for news and updates about the team's work throughout the course of the project.