Carrie Brookes

Peer researchers report on mental health services for Healthwatch

25/04/19

Peer researchers from our Experts by Experience network talked directly to people experiencing homelessness and those in insecure accommodation, gaining vital insights into some common problems. Healthwatch has now released the report, which includes some important recommendations to…

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SCIE Co-Production Advanced Skills Training Session

02/11/18

The day was all about using real life situations where we would like to see evidence of co-production. Lou says: ‘An Action Learning Set approach was used to brainstorm ideas, to focus on practical steps and reflect on the results….

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Stigma-challenging collaboration with graphic design students

27/09/18

People with multiple complex needs – combining mental health, alcohol and substance misuse with housing and other needs – often get thought and talked about in stereotyped and stigmatising ways, such as referring to people by a diagnosis/label or…

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Why we’re proud to be part of Fulfilling Lives Newcastle Gateshead – Oasis Aquila Housing

20/08/18

At Oasis Aquila Housing we’re passionate about supporting those in our services to live life to its fullest. Time and again we have seen the incredible resilience and strength that people can exhibit to overcome their circumstances. But we…

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Fulfilling Lives Newcastle Gateshead relaunches Experts By Experience with event in Gateshead

31/07/18

In Newcastle and Gateshead we have lots of people with lived experience of Multiple and Complex Needs with vital things to say that can shape the future for how systems and…

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Celebrating #coproweek and our peer research programme

05/07/18

Peer research is research that is steered and delivered by people with lived experience of the issues we are studying. It’s a bottom-up approach as people who are affected by the issues the research is exploring play…

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Fulfilling Lives Newcastle Gateshead presents new way of working at Homeless Link national conference

03/07/18

Alex Smith, Operational Lead at Fulfilling Lives Newcastle Gateshead (FLNG) will be presenting a workshop on Critical Time Intervention (CTI) for delegates at the Homeless Link ‘Under One Roof’ conference along with Shane Mycock, a System Change Practitioner at…

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Co-production – working together every time #coproweek

02/07/18

Across the country, along with 11 other Big Lottery-funded Fulfilling Lives Programmes we are working to create system change and improve services for people with multiple and complex needs, through co-production. This week we are all…

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The Co-production Approach #coproweek

02/07/18

Co-production is about working together, taking risks together, being responsible together, and solving problems together. Fulfilling Lives Newcastle Gateshead is one of 12 Big Lottery- funded projects across the UK, supporting…

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Transitions are tough: could CTI be the solution?

29/06/18

I moved house last year, months in the planning with hundreds of different tasks and dates to juggle, not to mention the wrench of leaving a neighbourhood I loved and neighbours who had become friends. The move…

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Pride in our peer research

23/05/18

I ended my last blog as we were about to start our fieldwork. I didn’t end up interviewing any of the TiaC service users for the research, but this was actually really useful as my reading of the…

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Workforce Development Lead at Fulfilling Lives has chapter published in innovative transatlantic book

28/03/18

‘Cross-Cultural Dialogues on Homelessness: From Pre-Treatment Strategies to Psychologically Informed Environments’ has been published this month, presenting innovative approaches toward the traumas that can underlie homelessness. The text is the first to explore what the US and UK can…

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Experts By Experience win NTWNHS Stars Award for innovative Respond training

18/03/18

The team won the prestigious ‘Working Together’ award from Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Trust for the innovative ‘Respond’ training package. This training package for mental health and emergency service professionals was piloted and co-designed with support from the…

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Creating change as a Peer Researcher

27/02/18

I’m Sheila and I’m a peer researcher evaluating Together in a Crisis. After a series of unfortunate events I had a mental health crisis, which led to me getting involved with organisations that help people with mental…

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‘Overwhelming’ response to mental health crisis training, say evaluators

15/02/18

Designed in the North East by mental health crisis care professionals and experts by experience, Respond simulates a mental health crisis scenario with video and audio clips, and group discussions in a safe environment. Respond brings together everyone in the…

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Research and Evaluation: How A Case Study Comes Together

26/01/18

Case studies are important because they add meaning to figures and statistics. They can detail the intricacies of people’s lives, sometimes even explaining actions and events with reasoned discussion. This is an important part of research for people…

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Research and Evaluation: Introducing Our Learning

12/01/18

Getting to grips with data On the first day of every month we analyse changes in caseloads, demographics, and referral information for Fulfilling Lives clients. This is distributed to people working within MCN in Newcastle or Gateshead as…

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Fulfilling Lives Newcastle Gateshead Evidence Included in House of Lords Report

10/01/18

Fulfilling Lives Newcastle Gateshead contributed to the submission of evidence to the APPG from the NECG in 2017, along with other Fulfilling Lives projects across the country. In April 2017, the APPG, in partnership with the Office…

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Partner organisation hosts White Ribbon Event to raise awareness of the campaign to end violence against women and girls.

21/11/17

This year Tyneside Women’s Health is working hard to raise awareness of the White Ribbon Campaign to end violence against women. The event will provide an opportunity to hear directly from women about their experiences of domestic abuse…

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Lead Partner Changing Lives Awarded North East Charity of the Year

03/10/17

Changing Lives was awarded the prestigious title at the North East Charity Awards, which were held at the Boiler Shop in Newcastle-upon-Tyne on 28th September 2017. Changing Lives were one of three charities based in the North East shortlisted…

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Manx Lottery Trust team meet with Fulfilling Lives Experts

10/08/17

On our recent trip to Newcastle, we were fortunate to be able to visit Fulfilling Lives, and meet some of the inspirational team. We first learned about the programme, its aims, outcomes and who it supports. The definition…

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People From All Walks of Life Unite for Gateshead Recovery Walk 2017

02/08/17

Gateshead’s Recovery Walk, now in its seventh year, is organised collaboratively by local charities to celebrate the supportive recovery community in the North East, and to raise awareness of addiction and recovery. We are proud to have the…

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Universal Credit: the knock-on effects

28/07/17

John was sofa-surfing when we supported him in his Universal Credit application. John didn’t have a bank account, so his Navigator went with him to a high street bank to start the process for opening an account there…

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Over 100 people expected to take part in seventh annual Recovery Walk in Gateshead

19/07/17

Gateshead’s Recovery Walk, now in its seventh year, is organised collaboratively by local charities to celebrate the supportive recovery community in the North East, and to raise awareness of addiction and recovery. National charity Changing Lives, Fulfilling Lives…

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Universal Credit: Can we Bank on it?

03/07/17

John has been a Fulfilling Lives client since June 2016. When John was referred to us in February 2016, he was living with his father and claiming Employment and Support Allowance (ESA). Between February and June, when he…

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System Broker presenting at Homeless Link’s annual conference #UnderOneRoof

01/07/17

Alex Smith, one of three System Brokers at FLNG, will be sharing learning on Critical Time Intervention (CTI), an innovative support model for people with multiple needs which is used predominantly in America. Alex visited Brilliant Corners, a…

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Universal Credit: Is it a Universal solution?

23/06/17

The introduction of Universal Credit is one of the biggest changes to the benefits system that we’ve ever seen. Universal Credit brings six current benefit payments together and pays them all as a single monthly payment, to mimic…

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Partner Organisation Bags National Award For Life-Changing Work!

14/06/17

Tyneside Women’s Health were one of the 10 winners of the 2017 GSK IMPACT Awards, a national award that recognises excellence in charities improving health and wellbeing in their communities. The charity will receive £30,000 in funding as part…

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Run, Rachael, Run! : Our Navigator’s Journey to Great North Run Success

02/06/17

As a programme, Fulfilling Lives is very much focused on change. A large proportion of my work is encouraging systems in Newcastle and Gateshead to change their outlook at the way they support people with multiple and complex needs. Despite…

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Transatlantic Exchange: John’s Story

24/05/17

John has faced a number of challenges throughout his life. He grew up in a chaotic household, exposed to his mom’s substance abuse, and joined a gang as a teenager. John began to drink alcohol problematically and was arrested…

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Multiple Needs Summit 2017: Remembering To Celebrate Successes

22/05/17

Our second day in Milton Keynes for the Multiple Needs Summit was opened by guest speakers including Alan Wallace (Fulfilling Lives South East), Steve Kahn (EBE Liverpool), and Karen Biggs (CEO Phoenix Futures). We were told that a 9…

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Multiple Needs Summit 2017: Challenging Perceptions

22/05/17

The Multiple Needs Summit was opened by our very own Terry Nelson, former member of our Experts by Experience group and now Development Manager at Jigsaw Recovery Project CIC. Terry set the scene for the event and asked…

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Transatlantic Exchange: The Reality of Paying the Bills

19/05/17

I met a Breaking Barriers client today who was very excited to show me her new apartment. After moving in only a month ago, I could feel her pride at having her own front door and she was very…

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Transatlantic Exchange: No Burning Bridges

16/05/17

A phrase that crops up for our complex needs clients here in the UK time and time again is that they have ‘burnt their bridges’ and therefore have very limited housing options available to them. From the time I have…

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Transatlantic Exchange: The Office of Diversion and Re-Entry

15/05/17

My host for the Transatlantic Exchange provides a number of different programmes for homeless people with criminal records. The main programme I am here to visit is Breaking Barriers, which provides temporary housing with case management support to people…

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Transatlantic Exchange: An empirically supported model for preventing homelessness in high risk groups

10/05/17

My Transatlantic Exchange host asked me to watch a video which is essential viewing for anyone interested in CTI. As I mentioned in my previous blog, CTI is designed to be a simple intervention to…

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Transatlantic Exchange: Is Simplicity The Solution For Complex Needs Services?

09/05/17

Following an 11 hour flight and jumping back in time 8 hours, I found myself at LAX and hoping that Jamie Foxx might be waiting at the taxi rank for some Collateral style commuting. Sadly, Jamie must have eventually…

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Transatlantic Exchange: Out of office is on and passport is packed!

05/05/17

I am currently ticking off the last tasks on my to-do list before I shut down for two weeks from my role with Fulfilling Lives Newcastle Gateshead. On Sunday, I’ll be starting my journey to America for Homeless Link’s Transatlantic…

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Multi-Agency ‘Respond’ Training Gains More Funding

04/05/17

Respond is a unique multi-agency simulation training package for professionals involved in mental health crisis care. Centred on the advice of people with lived experience such as our own Experts, Respond equips staff to respond quickly and appropriately to…

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Frontline Network / Be The Change North East Meeting: The Care Act

25/04/17

“As frontline staff, we work with vulnerable adults in need of care on a daily basis. So it’s surprising that so little of us have an extended knowledge of, or experience of, the Care Act. The Care Act was brought…

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System Broker Alex Secures Place on Homeless Link’s 2017 Transatlantic Exchange

21/03/17

Alex Smith, one of Fulfilling Lives NG’s three System Brokers, applied for the 2017 programme which sees frontline charity workers from the UK and across the pond join each other’s organisations for a fortnight to gain insight into…

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Fulfilling Lives Client Wins ‘Inspirational Award’

02/12/16

David has spent years in and out of prison and in ‘out of area’ hostels. He was referred to Fulfilling Lives Newcastle Gateshead and was allocated when he was in custody. I visited…

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How GP’s Lack of Mental Health Training Affects Fulfilling Lives’ Clients

07/11/16

Mind’s report also revealed that more than four in five (82%) of practice nurses said they’d had no mental health training at all. We know that over 90% of people receiving treatment and care for their mental health problems do…

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Why Basis@336 is a great Base for our Experts’ Dinner Club

21/10/16

Since opening the project in 2011 we’ve been acutely aware that Basis has unique access to those who visit the service, they want to be there and they trust us. These two things give us a great opportunity to…

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My First Fulfilling Lives Team Day (October 2016)

20/10/16

I attended my first Team Day this month, after being a part of the Fulfilling Lives team for almost 5 months. The day was the…

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Fulfilling Lives FC compete in local Recovery Shield

06/10/16

The Recovery Shield was held on 27th September 2016 at Redheugh Boy’s Football Club in Gateshead, and was organised by a staff member of Changing Lives: David McCormack. With this being it’s 5th year it was decided to make it…

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Get Involved with the Experts By Experience group

25/10/15

Our Experts By Experience reference group meetings give people with lived experience of the system(s) in Newcastle and Gateshead, or similar, a voice to direct how these need to operate and change to…

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