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Young Health Champions: You Said, We Did

Young Health Champions: You Said, We Did

by | Jan 26, 2026 | Mental Health, Participation, RBWM, Slough, Social Action, Young people's voices

Since 2018, Together As One has been delivering the Young Health Champions (YHC) programme on behalf of Frimley Integrated Care Board (ICB). The programme supports young people to become confident, informed advocates for positive mental health, while ensuring their lived experiences help shape local health services.

The scheme is underpinned by a nationally recognised qualification accredited by the Royal Society for Public Health. Through this qualification, young people learn about public health and mental health, and are supported to design and deliver their own health improvement messages to peers and wider communities.

Secret Shopping Local Health Services

A key strength of the Young Health Champions programme is its emphasis on meaningful engagement with real services. Young people explore local health provision, building confidence to access and signpost to support, while developing an informed understanding of service delivery and opportunities for improvement from a young person’s perspective.

As part of our delivery in Slough, and with the support of Frimley ICB, Together As One is able to ensure that young people’s feedback is shared not only with commissioners, but also directly with the services themselves. This creates a clear feedback loop, helping services understand young people’s experiences and supporting commissioners to drive improvement across the system.

You Said, We Listened, We Did

This year, 30 students from ten local schools took part in the programme. As part of their qualification, the young people carried out a “secret shopping” exercise across eight local health services, including CAMHS and Number 22. They explored issues such as accessibility, communication, clarity of information, and how welcoming and youth-friendly services felt.

Crucially, their feedback has been heard and acted upon.

As a direct result of the Young Health Champions’ insights, both commissioners and services have made changes to improve how young people experience and access support. This demonstrates the powerful impact young people can have when their voices are listened to, valued, and taken seriously.

Below is a summary of the changes that have been implemented as a direct consequence of their work – a clear example of You said. We listened. We did.
For a comprehensive summary of the feedback and associated service improvements, please click here: YHCs: You said, We listened, We did  

Service YHCs said We did Next steps
Youth Stop Vaping Hard to find information, unclear access, poor digital communication Created a clear youth vaping web hub and explored new referral routes Improve responsiveness, tone and digital access
Kooth Young people felt the referral process was long, confusing and slow to follow up Moved from Integrated Digital Pathway (IDP) to core Kooth.com pathway and introduced SMS contact Monitor engagement and improve continuity
Number 22 Clear service and website but unclear crisis support Refocused on counselling capacity and clearer signposting Grow face-to-face and community work
The Garden Clinic Website unclear, privacy concerns, limited youth engagement Updating website, expanding social media, creation of the Youth Patient Forum Engage more young people through Youth Patient Forum
CAMHS Difficult to find East Berkshire CAMHS site and complete referrals Shared feedback to inform wider Berkshire Healthcare Foundation Trust (BHFT) website redesign Improve visibility, form clarity and usability
Getting Help Team (CAMHS) Referral form confusing, jargon-heavy, form didn’t display well on phones The referral form is now accessible directly from the CAMHS Getting Help Team page on the BHFT website Reduce jargon and strengthen awareness of service

 

Job Opportunity: SEND Engagement and Participation Officer

Job Opportunity: SEND Engagement and Participation Officer

by | Jan 15, 2026 | Jobs, Participation, Special Educational Needs and Disabilities SEND, Young people's voices

Location: Slough (Hybrid)
Salary: £29,000 per year
Contract: Full-time, 18-month fixed term
Closing Date: 2 February 2026 at 17:00

Together As One is a youth-focused charity committed to empowering young people and strengthening community inclusion across Slough and surrounding areas. We’re currently seeking a passionate SEND Engagement and Participation Officer to join our team and champion the voices of children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND).

About the Role

As the SEND Engagement and Participation Officer, you will:

  • Develop and embed participation processes for children and young people (CYP) with SEND across Slough.

  • Empower young people with SEND to influence service planning, delivery, evaluation and local policy.

  • Work collaboratively with education, health, social care, voluntary sector partners, families and carers to promote inclusive engagement.

  • Co-produce participation opportunities to ensure SEND CYP have meaningful input into services that affect them.

  • Use face-to-face and digital engagement methods to reach diverse young people with SEND.

This is a specialist role requiring experience of working with CYP with SEND, knowledge of reasonable adjustments, safeguarding, service design and co-production, and strong communication skills.

Key Responsibilities

  • Build and coordinate networks of participation and co-production across Slough.

  • Act as an advocate for the rights of SEND young people in decision-making forums.

  • Support diverse communication needs to enable meaningful participation.

  • Promote inclusive practices and challenge under-representation and bias.

Person Specification

We’re looking for someone who:

  • Has a strong understanding of SEND needs and inclusive participation practice.

  • Can build positive, empathetic relationships with young people and their families.

  • Is creative and confident in both face-to-face and digital engagement.

  • Is committed to equality, diversity and accessibility in service design and delivery.

Together As One is proud to support equality, diversity and inclusion throughout recruitment and welcomes applications from candidates with SEND.

👉 Apply before: 2 February 2026 at 17:00

For more information and to apply, please visit Charity Job.