Tameside and Glossop: Empowering Young People's Mental Health Support Through Voice-Led Co-Production

Supporting young people to develop resilience means actively listening to what they need. With this in mind, the Tameside and Glossop Strategic Commission partnered with Worth-it to deliver a pioneering, voice-led consultancy project. The aim was to engage local young people directly in the design, procurement, and implementation of a new children and young people’s (CYP) emotional health and wellbeing community offer.

Rather than designing a service for young people, this project empowered them to design it themselves. By using an iterative co-production process rooted in positive psychology and solution-focused coaching, we helped commissioners understand exactly what young people need to build resilience and overcome emotional challenges.

Project Implementation Summary and Timeline

The project was delivered through a highly adaptive, multi-stage process during lockdown of the summer of 2020. Despite the challenges of remote engagement, 66 young people aged 10 to 18 actively participated in the programme.

At the heart of the project was a core group of 19 recruited 'Wellbeing Champions'. These young people—many of whom had lived experience of emotional wellbeing challenges—were trained in basic co-production and solution-focused techniques. They then co-designed and led peer engagement workshops, distributed qualitative surveys, and created visual projects to highlight their ideal mental health services.

The project resulted in the development of bespoke Wellbeing Frameworks that directly shaped the region's commissioning strategy, demonstrating the profound impact of coaching for change.

Why did Tameside and Glossop choose this approach?

Traditional consultation often asks young people to focus on their problems. Tameside and Glossop recognised that to create a truly effective community offer, they needed an approach that built on young people's existing capabilities.

We utilised a methodology that combined the New Economics Foundation (NEF) framework for effective co-production with our evidence-based Solution-Focused Coaching approach. This ensured that outcomes were not "done to" the young people. Instead, the process empowered them to take ownership of their own solutions, focusing on what works well and what resources help them build resilience in daily life.

Delivery of the Project and Timeframes

The delivery of the project was broken down into five iterative stages, blending individual support with group collaboration:

• Stage 1: One-to-One Interviews: We conducted solution-focused, semi-structured interviews with 12 young people to explore their perceptions of wellbeing and gather ideas for engaging their peers.
• Stage 2: Online Group Workshops: We facilitated online workshops for 14 young people. Using their own language and feedback, we built upon initial themes to understand their internal and external support systems.
• Stage 3: Peer-Led Wellbeing Survey: The Wellbeing Champions utilised their own peer networks to distribute a co-produced survey, successfully gathering qualitative insights from 66 local young people.
• Stage 4: Creative Challenge Projects: Young people translated their findings into creative outputs, using drawings and presentations to design their "ideal service" and highlight provision requirements.
• Stage 5: Review and Finalisation: The young people reviewed the drawn-up themes, resulting in the final frameworks presented to the commissioners. This supported the co-production of localised service design for young people.

Throughout the process, we provided ongoing coaching support to the Wellbeing Champions to build their confidence, communication skills, and self-awarenes

What impact has the project had on the community offer?

The voice-led consultancy provided commissioners with clear, actionable data about what young people actually need. We developed two core models: the T&G Young Person’s Wellbeing Framework and the T&G Wellbeing Resources Framework.

The project highlighted crucial provision requirements for the new service, including:

• The 'Traits of the Helper': Young people stressed that they do not always want clinical experts; they want compassionate, non-judgemental, everyday people who listen. As one young person noted, "I think everyday people who might have an interest in helping young people develop their wellbeing... it can be daunting when you have someone who says they’re a specialist in it."
• Accessible Community Spaces (Wellbeing Hubs): The need for quiet, relaxing, and engaging environments, particularly highlighting the need to make spaces accessible for boys who might feel pressured to hide their emotions due to fear of judgement.
• Breaking Down Barriers: The project identified that fear, shame, and a lack of knowledge were the biggest barriers to accessing support, guiding the community offer to focus heavily on early awareness and anti-stigma.

What has been the impact on the young people?

By treating young people as the experts of their own lived experiences, the project acted as an intervention in itself. Empowerment through positive psychology gave the Wellbeing Champions a profound sense of purpose and accomplishment.

Through taking part in solution-focused coaching and peer-led workshops, the participants developed essential life skills. They improved their ability to label and understand their emotions, learned how to articulate their needs, and built the internal resilience required to support both themselves and their peers.

Find Out More and Next Steps

The Tameside and Glossop project proves that when we equip young people and the adults who support them with the right tools, the results are transformative. Meaningful co-production requires skilled facilitation, deep listening, and a commitment to positive psychology.

Are you ready to create this kind of positive change in your own setting?

If you are a leader in a school, Local Authority, or community organisation and want to develop a similar youth-led wellbeing project, our consultancy services can provide the exact framework to do so.

We offer bespoke support tailored to your organisation's unique needs. We can help you:

•  Develop a strategic plan for youth-led mental health initiatives.
•  Train your staff in positive psychology and solution-focused coaching.
•  Facilitate co-production workshops that empower young people.
•  Build a sustainable model for long-term impact.

Discover how our expert consultancy can help you build resilience in young lives, implement evidence-based strategies, and confidently empower the young people you work with.