Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash
In previous posts, I have talked about the importance of people’s stories as a tool to influencing government policy. While statistics, facts and figures are an important part of the policy influencing toolbox, it is people’s stories which bring it all to life and make the change that you might be seeking more relatable. Afterall, we are hard-wired as humans to communicate through stories.
Throughout my career, I have created opportunities to give a voice to people who are often not heard in the policy making process. Earlier in my career, I was fortunate to play my part in the very first formal channel for older people’s voices in health policy which had an enormous impact on the decisions that government took. More recently, I have been championing opportunities for harder to hear voices to be heard in the policy process.
A couple of readers have been in touch about how to go about harnessing people’s stories to influence policy, so thought that I would dig a bit deeper. In this post, I take a look at some of the different ways that you can amplify people’s voices to support your policy asks, and explore some of the things to think about.
I don’t claim to be an expert on the vital community development work that needs to take place to give a voice to people’s experiences, so this post is not a ‘how to’ guide on good community development – there are others who are far more expert on that than I am. But what I do know is the positive impact that people’s voices can have on policy development, and I hope that what I share will be useful in helping you to harness, and amplify, those voices.
Tip #1: Surveys can be a useful tool
One of the simplest ways to make sure that your policy work is grounded in people’s experiences and voices is to run a survey. There are a variety of methodologies that can be used to run surveys, and they can be a useful tool to gather both attitudinal feedback (e.g. what do you think about a particular issue?) to something a bit more factual (e.g. what do you estimate the cost of X to be?). If you do use a survey as part of your work, it’s important to think carefully about the sample you will survey, and how generalisable your findings might be.
Tip #2: Focus groups can help you dig deeper
While a survey might give you quite ‘static’ information and insights, focus groups can allow you to dig a bit deeper and to begin to explore, for example, some different policy options. As with surveys, you need to think carefully about where you would draw focus group participants from, and how representative their views might be. Focus groups can be particularly effective as a way to sense-check some ideas or proposals, as it will provide some ‘real-world’ feedback.
Tip #3: Interviews give you rich insight
Investing time and energy in conducting more detailed interviews with people can be a really effective way of getting real depth and insight to support your policy influencing work. It gives you the opportunity to ask further questions, to clarify things, and to listen to the person’s story in their own words. When conducting such interviews, do give thought to how to support and protect the person that you are talking to – especially where you might be talking with them about difficult or challenging issues. Be aware of the impact that such a conversation might have on them, and prepare accordingly.
Tip #4: Co-production can be incredibly effective
Co-production refers to a group of people (normally a mix of people with lived experience and professionals) working together to come up with answers or solutions to problems. It can be an incredibly powerful tool in policy development work, and can lead to policy recommendations which are grounded in the reality of people’s lived experience. I’ll return to the power of co-production in a future post.
Tip #5: Think about harder to hear voices
Providing a platform for what are considered to be harder to hear voices can be incredibly powerful. Those are the stories and experiences that are too often overlooked in the development and implementation of policy. When trying to connect with those voices, it’s a good idea to connect with local groups or organisations who are closer to those particular communities. Very often those groups and organisations will be very small, and often volunteer-run or led. If you work with these groups or organisations, don’t forget to pay them for their time and effort.
Tip #6: Deploying people’s voices to influence policy
Having gathered people’s stories and experiences, there are a number of different ways that you can deploy that evidence to support your policy influencing work. Apart from the obvious things like including quotes and examples in policy documents, briefings, and submissions, I’d encourage you to think creatively about how you can platform people’s voices. For example, seeking opportunities for people to give oral evidence at parliamentary enquiries or all-party parliamentary groups, or encouraging your activists and supporters to go and speak to their local politicians.
Tip #7: Stories help persuade politicians
As I have mentioned in previous posts, it’s important not to underestimate the power of stories to influence politicians. Facts and figures are, of course, very important in making a case for change, but it’s people’s stories that bring an issue to life, making it relatable and understandable on a very human level. Stories are, of course, all the more powerful when you provide a platform for people to tell them in their own words.
Tip #8: Case studies and stories are vital for media
As I covered in a previous post, the media can be a powerful policy influencing tool. One of the things that the media will always be looking for are the case studies and stories to illustrate a story. This is often true for both news and features.
Tip #9: Consent matters
However you are planning to capture people’s stories and experiences to support your policy influencing work, it’s vital that you make sure that you have people’s consent. Whether that is consent to use people’s responses to a survey, consent to use quotes from a focus group or interview in a submission or document, or consent to share their story with the media. It’s essential that people agree to how their story might be used.
Tip #10: Don’t make assumptions
In harnessing people’s voices to influence policy, it’s really important that you go in with an open mind. You won’t know what people will want to say, what experiences they want to share, or how their experiences might shape your policy asks until you get started. Be prepared to flex and adapt, and to be genuinely informed by people’s stories.
What other ways can the voice of people’s lived experience help shape your policy influencing work? Let me know your thoughts in the comments section below.
If you or your organisation are looking to do more policy influencing work, and would like some help or advice, I’d be happy to have a chat. Just drop me a line via the ‘Contact’ link above, or email me at hello@thepolicycoach.co.uk
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