Formal consultation during Sept/Oct 2014 was carried out as part of the Your Borough, Your Voice process.

There has been engagement with service users on the future configuration of these services over the past two years, including, in 2013, a strategic review and consultation of day opportunities involved 387 stakeholders. The outcome was for a stronger focus on recovery and wellbeing, supporting service users to direct their own support, and use mainstream services.

During May/June 2014, commissioners visited five day centres and received feedback from around 60 service users which highlighted the value of current day opportunities. This was followed up by three service design workshops with voluntary sector providers in July 2014. The workshops were informed by service user input from the previous sessions and enabled the proposed service model to take shape.

A further five consultation events took place in Sept/Oct 2014 as part of the Council’s Your Borough, Your Voice process. The aim of these events was to gather feedback on savings proposals which included potential reduction in voluntary spend on mental health day opportunities. A consultation document, Mental Health Recovery & Wellbeing – A Consultation on the Future of Day Opportunities  was published in Sept 2014. 

The consultation document outlined the proposed service model within the context of potential savings and reduction in voluntary sector spending. During this process, 118 pieces of correspondence were received in the form of letters and questionnaires from service users, mental health professionals, carers and voluntary sector providers. Although spending cuts were broadly opposed, there was overall support for proposals relating to the service model.