About UKC-SUCI
An overview of how we are achieving our mission and ensuring a lasting impact on academic and professional practice across the UK.
An overview of how we are achieving our mission and ensuring a lasting impact on academic and professional practice across the UK.
The UK Counsel for Service User and Carer Involvement (SUCI) in Higher Education (UKC-SUCI) was initiated in 2024, responding to a need to establish SUCI standards for health and social care programmes across UK HEIs.
The UKC-SUCI is a collaborative community of educators, research practitioners, service users and carers dedicated to advancing service user and carer involvement in teaching and learning within higher education. As leaders in championing education and co-production, we provide access to innovative practices and meaningful professional development opportunities on service user and carer involvement.
The integration of lived experiences and authentic voices into the educational journey of students across health and social care programmes, informed by an institution's commitment to high quality teaching and learning standards.
We aim to foster an inclusive, supportive environment for exchanging ideas, learning from diverse perspectives, and shaping the future of health and social care education. We believe this approach enriches the experiences of students, academic staff, service users and carers, while fostering a culture of respect, collaboration and mutual learning.
To advance effective and meaningful SUCI guiding practice to support academics within UK Higher Education Institutions, so that all health and social care students' education encompasses lived experiences of service users and carers.
At UKC-SUCI, the success of Service User and Carer Involvement (SUCI) in teaching and learning is driven by these core values.
A commitment to fostering open access, promoting inclusivity, and actively inviting service users, carers, educators, students and researchers to engage and contribute. This ensures continuous growth and the integration of diverse perspectives in education.
A dedication to exploring and implementing new approaches, methods and technologies that amplify the voices of service users and carers, driving transformative learning experiences.
An intentional focus on engaging diverse perspectives and ensuring all voices, especially those with lived experiences, are valued, respected and central to shaping curriculum, teaching and learning strategies in HE.
Supporting the development of staff by sharing resources and research, practising scholarly inquiry, promoting partnership and fostering community.
UKC-SUCI aspires to be recognised nationally on service user and carer involvement in HE and influencing policy across institutions; to provide best practice standards to HEIs on aligning with and implementing Professional, Statutory and Regulatory Body (PSRB) requirements for service user and carer involvement in health and social care education.
We aim to foster a national network that advocates for SUCI best practices and facilitates co-production in education.
Our strategic direction is focused on embedding SUCI within HEIs, ensuring that professional, statutory and regulatory body (PSRB) standards are met and exceeded.
Define SUCI as an essential component of inclusive education, shaping curricula and enhancing learning outcomes.
Embed SUCI in institutional policies, curriculum design and student engagement strategies.
Strengthen collaborations between educators, students and service users.
Measure and demonstrate the impact of SUCI on academic quality, student experience and institutional reputation.
Recruitment and induction of SUCI members.
Integration and coordination of SUCI members across health and social care programmes.
Development of best practice guidelines including training, curriculum design, teaching, learning and assessment.
Outreach and partnerships with stakeholders to strengthen national policy influence.
Ongoing research and professional development.
UKC-SUCI's sustainable advantage lies in its ability to provide:
A national approach to SUCI in higher education.
Expert guidance and support on embedding lived experiences into health and social care programmes.
A collaborative community for ongoing learning and improvement.
Connect with educators, researchers, service users and carers shaping the future of health and social care education.