Nigerian Community in Dorset (NCD) had worked with Trusted Voices during the Covid-19 lockdowns to fact-check the information they were hearing about Covid and the vaccines. This was valuable to them, so after the lockdowns they approached Trusted Voices to ask for more health information relevant to their community.

NCD requested support on three key areas that specifically impact the Black community in nuanced ways: diabetes, prostate cancer and mental health. The Trusted Voices team sought out relevant topic experts, and organised some online webinars.

“On all of those three events all I needed to do was just say to Hannah I’m thinking about this topic and it’s a case of ‘leave it with me’ and she’ll engage with everyone she needs to engage with. I don’t think we would be able to do any of those topics if it weren’t for [the Trusted Voices team].” – DBA Trusted Voices Champion

People attended these webinars from across Dorset and abroad. The prostate cancer webinar was particularly well received because there was a Black speaker and the attendees happened to be almost entirely Black men. This meant attendees felt comfortable discussing the topic. The other workshops led to some valuable feedback regarding cultural competency.

“People tend to listen to someone who’s like them. The feedback was ‘this is less like me’. [The presenter] talked about a ‘typical plate’, and the feedback was this is less like what I eat.” – NCD Trusted Voices Champion

This feedback led to a significant increase in focus on co-production in the way Trusted Voices worked, and a focus on being a ‘good host’ to both presenter and attendee. Since then, a lot more focus has been given to ensuring presenters are given adequate time, advice and resources to create culturally competent and health literate materials.

“I think I that one of the main takeaways from that was about asking and involving the community themselves instead of prescribing. Not going in with ‘this is what we’d like to tell you or teach you or show you’. Finding out from them first. So it is place based and it is community centred. We’re not telling them what we think they should be aware of or know, we’re hearing from them first before we design any kind of approach.” – LWD staff member involved in NCD workshop

Dorset Blind Association (DBA) reached out to Trusted Voices for support for their members. The Trusted Voices team went out to meet blind and partially sighted members of DBA in person. Conversations which were often animated through strength of feeling highlighted how the specific needs of blind and partially sighted people were often overlooked by NHS services, and that navigating the world can be extremely stressful.

“It was really brave of [the Trusted Voices team] to reach out in person. That’s the problem usually, people don’t do that, it’s fob off instead… I was really impressed with [them] because they put themselves out there.” – DBA Trusted Voices Champion

The Trusted Voices team worked with DBA to co-produce guidelines for how to create content useful for blind and partially sighted people, eg emphasising the senses, avoiding visualisations, and making content memorable because many cannot take notes or read handouts. The Trusted Voices team then worked with LiveWell Dorset to create materials on two topics: how to navigate and advocate for yourself in the health system, and mindfulness for stress relief. This was an iterative process where the Trusted Voices team acted as a bridge between DBA and LiveWell Dorset to improve the materials. Workshops covering both topics took place in January 2024 on two consecutive weeks so that lessons could be learned from the first to apply to the second.

Sixteen members attended the first workshop and fourteen the second.

“The workshop delivery was on point. All members were positive after the first session and again after the second with them all asking when the next workshop would take place. The team listened to feedback from the first session and tweaked it accordingly… One member cried during the first workshop when Paula asked everyone to repeat ‘I am doing my best’, this member returned for the second workshop and smiled the entire time. Another stated the workshops were perfect with a score of 100% and asked to attend future sessions. Thank you for enabling these workshops to take place. They have been excellent and opened discussions on various things including NHS staff benefitting from visual impairment awareness training to knowing those with sight loss have a right to have information in a format of their choice instead of being ignored. It has empowered DBA members.” – DBA Trusted Voices Champion