Telling stories and shaping solutions: A toolkit for empowering people who have lived experience of food poverty

There is currently a lack of voice for grassroots people, those who are experiencing food poverty and hunger, their peers and allies within their community, both within the sector and more widely within society. We believe individuals with direct experience at a grassroots level should play an active role in identifying and advocating for long term solutions to the issues they face. By doing this, projects, policy, support and interventions are better designed for the people they are designed to help. Put simply, it’s about giving those at a grassroots level the power they are too often denied, to make change happen.

This toolkit covers:

• Why involve people with lived experience?
• Why do people want to get involved?
• Who are the people we want to empower?
• What are the challenges?
• What do we mean by empowerment?
• Recruiting people to become involved
• Minding our language
• Four core principles and case studies
  • Co-production
  • Building relationships
  • Influencing and impact
  • Building a social movement
• Advice for people with lived experience who get involved
• Practical consideration

Toolkit written by Ben Pearson, Church Action on Poverty, with Maddie Guerlain and Simon Shaw, Sustain: the alliance for better food and farming