Lived experience across VISION

Incorporating the voices of those who have experienced and those who have caused violence is a key aspect of VISION. We actively engage with individuals who have lived experiences of domestic and sexual violence, as well as other forms of violence, across diverse social groups and age ranges.

We use the research involvement framework developed by Survivors Voices to articulate the level of involvement. We are clear about the roles and expectations and acknowledge everyone's contribution in publications.

To support and train individuals with lived experience to be involved in research, we are collaborating with existing organisations with a track record of research co-production and who are recruiting and facilitating lived experience groups to engage with VISION researchers.

1. SafeLives Safe Young Lives Authentic Voice Group

We are working with SafeLives’ Safe Young Lives Authentic Voice Group to explore adolescent domestic abuse, including the 16-year age threshold applied by the police. This work is VISION’s response to a question posed to us by Thames Valley Police: should the age at which the police formally recognise domestic abuse be reduced from 16 to 13? Working with the group will inform the development of a substantive and methodological framework for future research.

2. Violence, Abuse, and Mental Health Network Lived Experience Advisory Group

Members of the VAMHN Lived Experience Advisory Group have a wealth of experience in consultancy, training, and research. Drawing on these skills, as well as on their experiences of violence, abuse, and mental health difficulties, they have been steering VAMHN activities since their formation. Their work has included identifying priority areas for future research, developing VAMHN grant funding processes, and producing resources including webinars, podcasts, blogs, and reports. The VAMHN LEAG have been working with VISION researchers to advise on current and former research and to inform how experiential knowledge and evidence is integrated across VISION activities. Future work will involve the co-design of a research study to be conducted by the VAMHN LEAG.

3. Revolving Doors

Revolving Doors (RD) champions long-term solutions for justice reform that tackle the root causes of repeat, low-level crime and support people’s journeys towards better lives. They focus on the ‘revolving door’ group, those who have repeat contact with the criminal justice system whose behaviours are largely driven by unmet health and social needs and advocate for a system that recognises and addresses the drivers of contact with that system, namely trauma, poverty and discrimination including racism. The VISION consortium is partnering with RD to build lived experience coproduction into its crime and justice workstream through convening a lived experience research coproduction team for an initial 12-month period.

Lived experience as essential knowledge


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In February 2024, the Violence, Abuse, and Mental Health Network (VAMHN) Lived Experience Advisory Group members and several UKPRP VISION Consortium researchers explored together the role of lived experience as a form of knowledge and evidence. They addressed lived experience’s placement within the “evidence hierarchy” and the impact of language on engagement.

Key points included the significant influence of labels and power dynamics in determining which experiences are deemed valuable, the potential negative connotations of the term “lived experience,” and the necessity for lived experience to be integrated into research processes rather than being an afterthought.

Discussions underscored the evolving nature of lived experience, the challenges in showcasing expertise, the importance of ethical considerations, and the need for ongoing support and safe spaces for meaningful engagement. The workshop emphasised that lived experience should be a foundational element in research, akin to an integral ingredient, not merely an optional addition.

The discussions were summarised as a colourful and exciting infographic, illustrated by Jenny Leonard (www.jennyleonardart.com).