‘Everyone will gain from sharing experiences’
We’re in the final run-up to the annual DDN Conference on 13 July. We’ll hear from people with personal experience of all the issues reflected in our pages, including making a path from the criminal justice system – a key theme of this issue.
In February 2008 I wrote in my editor’s letter, following the first DDN Conference (in partnership with The Alliance, back then): ‘Reactions to our first DDN/Alliance service user conference have been illuminating, interesting and inspiring for the next attempt. Most of the responses have been overwhelmingly enthusiastic; it’s on the online forums that discussion gets more open.
Some contributors suspected there was no point to the event, as nothing would change. Others found it a less than polished experience compared to a standard conference format. Some didn’t go – but were sure it couldn’t have been worth it. That’s the most frustrating comment to hear!’
So where are we 15 years later? Still hosting the dialogue and convinced that everyone will gain a lot from sharing very diverse experiences –see Anna’s article on p22. I still hear the occasional comment ‘it isn’t for me’ – but these days I want more than ever to know, why not?
Read the June issue as an online magazine or download the PDF here
Claire Brown, editor
Please send your letters and comment to claire@cjwellings.com