On Thursday 15 May, Beyond, NHS Cheshire and Merseyside’s children and young people’s transformation programme, held their third annual conference. Delivery of the conference was supported through sponsorship from St. Helens Wellbeing Service and The Brush Bus.
The conference was centred around storytelling, shared learning, and conversation, shaped by the voices of children and young people from across our region.
The conference placed youth voice at the forefront. The Willful Misfits, in collaboration with Foolsize Theatre, presented a series of impactful animations co-created with young people. These stories highlighted the lived experience of care for the young people involved – when it works, and when it doesn’t. Their contributions reminded us why youth voices need to be embedded at the heart of system change.
Fourteen-year-old Casey set a powerful tone by opening the conference with a personal story. Later, he returned to share a poem – a reflection that captured the conversations, connections, and experiences he’d had throughout the day.
A standout feature of the day was the live visual minutes, illustrated by Taylor and Jess, students from Cheshire College – Crewe Campus. Specially trained for the conference, they brought the day’s key themes and insights to life.
The speaker lineup offered a diverse mix of voices united by a passion for improving outcomes for children and young people:
- John Grinnell set the stage with A Vision for Impact, outlining a bold, values-led approach for the future.
- Natalie Denny explored Harnessing the Power of Storytelling, showing how narratives can reshape engagement and service design.
- Katie Dixon and Professor Lucy Bray introduced ISupport: Setting the Standard, demonstrating how co-produced resources are creating consistent, compassionate care and how the framework will be used as a vehicle for change across our sectors.
- Professor Ian Ashworth, Dr Yvonne Dailey, and Jordan Brown shared the work of All Together Smiling, a 3-year supervised toothbrushing programme being delivered across Cheshire and Merseyside to improve oral health, highlighting system-wide, preventative efforts to tackle health inequalities.
- Professor Simon Kenny closed the day with The Neighbourhood Approach, advocating for locally led, community-driven solutions that prioritise young people and families.
Workshops were undertaken throughout the day covering key areas of work across the Beyond Programme, aligned to the three shifts in delivery: Hospital to Community, Analogue to Digital and Treatment to Prevention. These discussions provided practical insights into how services are evolving to better meet the needs of young people, encouraging reflection on new and emerging approaches.
Poetry written by young people featured throughout the day which aligned with the conference’s storytelling theme. This theme was developed from the Child Health Equity Collaborative (CHEC) pilot in Liverpool, which focuses on storytelling as an approach to supporting school readiness and is delivered through the Family Nurse Partnership.
Delegates donated books for young people in lieu of conference fees. These books were distributed to families via the Family Nurse Partnership and KIND.
Dr Elizabeth Crabtree, Beyond Programme Director said:
“This year’s Beyond Annual Conference was a huge success – a day filled with powerful stories, honest conversations, and strong connections.
“We’re so grateful to all of the speakers, facilitators, and partners – including sponsors St Helens Wellbeing and The Brush Bus – for helping bring this event to life.
“Most of all, thank you to the young people who contributed throughout the day. Your input was powerful and thoughtful and has left a lasting impact on all of us who attended.”
To view the animations and poems featured at the conference please click here.
To view the visual minutes illustrated by students from Cheshire College – Crewe Campus click here.
Content provided by NHS Cheshire and Merseyside.
Published on Thu, 12 Jun 2025 10:00:00 GMT
Modified on Thu, 12 Jun 2025 18:09:26 GMT
