New public involvement champions put people and communities at the heart of innovation

Health Innovation Kent Surrey Sussex (KSS) has launched its first cohort of Public Involvement Champions, marking an important step in the organisation’s commitment to ensuring people and communities are at the centre of everything that we do.

The new network of champions will build skills, confidence and capability in working with people and communities across Health Innovation KSS. This will help to ensure that public involvement is embedded in a meaningful and impactful way across our programmes and projects.

Public Involvement Champions are volunteer members of staff from across the organisation.  They are committed to ensuring that the voices of patients, carers, staff and communities help shape Health Innovation KSS’s work. The volunteers bring enthusiasm, passion and a shared belief that the most effective innovations are grounded in people’s experiences and insights.

Working closely with the Working with People and Communities (WWP&C) Lead (Isabel Clark), they will act as advocates within their teams, encouraging colleagues to think about public involvement from the earliest stages of project and programme development. The Champions have helped to shape the Health Innovation KSS WWP&C 2026/28 strategy through leading and facilitating the focus groups.

The Champions are beginning to embed WWP&C across all areas of the organisation from innovator support to programme delivery as well as signposting and sharing of information and resources available to Health Innovation KSS teams. This work has already begun on engaging with people and communities to better understand barriers to providing maternal milk to newborns and improve outcomes for babies through more inclusive and accessible support.

Working with people and communities is an important part of our commissions from the Office for Life Sciences and NHS England. This work helps build on three key principles:

• community insight – gathering experiences of health and wellbeing to guide research and innovation
• an asset-based approach – building on local strengths and resources to co-design solutions
• trusted and accessible method – working with voluntary, community and social enterprise partners (VSCE) to hear lived experiences and help tackle health inequalities.

Lisa James, Chief Operating Officer and Executive Lead for Working with People and Communities, said:

“The launch of our first cohort of Public Involvement Champions is a significant milestone for Health Innovation KSS. By investing in our people and building confidence across the organisation, we are strengthening our ability to work in partnership with communities and ensure lived experience informs our work. We know that the best innovations are developed with people, not for people, and our champions will help make that a reality.”

Our newly appointed champions spoke of their enthusiasm for the role and the opportunity to support meaningful involvement across the organisation.

	Ginny Common, Public Involvement Champion “Becoming a public involvement champion and witnessing the investment into working with people and communities in Health Innovation KSS is exciting to see. We strive to support the improvement of our health and social care system and working with people and communities better equips us to do this work justice.”
	Julian O’Kelly, Public Involvement Champion “Becoming a public involvement champion and witnessing the investment into working with people and communities in Health Innovation KSS is exciting to see. We strive to support the improvement of our health and social care system and working with people and communities better equips us to do this work justice.”
	Rachael Garrett, Public Involvement Champion “As a midwife, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Champion, and representative for the Patient Safety Collaborative, I have always believed in the value of working alongside people and communities. Throughout my career, I have championed equity by ensuring every voice is heard, particularly those from diverse and underrepresented communities. I have facilitated numerous public engagement events, collaborated on lived experience videos, and worked closely with communities to help shape services and improve the support and care we provide. I firmly believe that anything designed for patients—whether it’s a leaflet, service, or programme—should be co-produced with the people it is intended to serve. Without meaningful involvement from our diverse communities, the end result is unlikely to truly meet their needs. This commitment to partnership is why I became a Working with People and Communities Champion.”
	Lucie Hooper, Public Involvement Champion “I’m delighted to take on the role of public involvement champion at Health Innovation KSS. Working collaboratively with communities is essential to understanding the health needs of our local population and ensuring that the solutions we develop are co-produced with the people they are designed to benefit.”

 Find out more about our work with people and communities here