Reimagining Safety Workshop

15th November, 2pm – 3.30pm

Resources from the session

This session was not recorded, but we can share some resources that were shared during the session:

• Maslaha’s Radical Safeguarding Workbook
• Chayn’s blogs about user research (implementing trauma-informed principles into research design)
• Reimagining Safety Beyond Safeguarding by Ruairi White

Please email Ruairi White, who is leading NSUN’s work on safety and safeguarding, at ruairi.white@nsun.org.uk if you would like to be kept in the loop about future networking events and resources.

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Many people with lived experience of mental ill-health, distress or trauma can name at least one moment in our lives where we felt ourselves being perceived no longer as a person but as a ‘risk’ or ‘at risk’. The negative impacts of safeguarding practices and the assumptions they’re built on are particularly severe for Black people and people of colour, young people and people who experience particularly stigmatised forms of distress.

In this workshop, we unpick some assumptions around safety and agency in mental health. We are particularly interested in exploring safeguarding in relation to hearing voices, suicidality, criminalisation and young people’s mental health.

Workshop structure: Ruairi White will hold short brainstorming conversations with Kadra Abdinasir and Fiona Malpass. Workshop attendees will take part in facilitated discussions exploring the topics that come up, share their knowledge and insights, and examine alternative, transformative approaches to safety.

Trigger warnings: due to the topic, we are likely to talk about racism, criminalisation, incarceration, suicidality, self-harm, medical harm and neglect, and the impacts of these things on both adults and young people. There will be no obligation to share experiences of your own, though you’re welcome to bring those to the space as part of your lived experience knowledge.

Chair: Ruairi White (NSUN)
Guests: Fiona Malpass and Kadra Abdinasir

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• This session will have British Sign Language interpretation if requested (please provide any accessibility requirements via the sign up form or email Amy Wells at amy.wells@nsun.org.uk) and closed captions.
• There are limited spaces for this session, so please do cancel (using the link on the email sent to you after signing up) if you can no longer make the session. If the session is full, please email info@nsun.org.uk to be added to a waiting list (with the name of the session in the subject).
• This session will not be recorded.
• We ask that attendees agree to the principles of our group agreement to keep the space as safe as possible for everyone.

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