Richmond Group Physical Activity Programme: Lived Experience Network Member

There will be a range of ways to get involved in the Lived Experience Network. Once you are a member of the network, we will do our best to match opportunities to your interests, availability, and lived experiences.

Share your perspective in panel discussions:

• Join online panel meetings held four times a year
• Each session focuses on a different topic, such as new initiatives, campaigns, or policy changes.
• You don’t need to attend every meeting—your voice is welcome whenever you’re available.

Be matched with adhoc opportunities and invited to take part by the physical activity team in things such as:

• Joining a short-term focus group on a specific topic, such as our policy work, improving access to physical activity or shaping new resources
• Helping shape projects by sharing your insights on what works and what doesn’t
• Be an advocate and inspire others by sharing your story at events or contributing to blogs etc.
• Helping improve materials and messaging by providing feedback on draft resources or surveys etc.  

Through all involvement opportunities you will be invited to:

• Share you lived experience in safe, supporting spaces
• Collaborate with others to help improve services and support
• Help shape solutions that reflect real needs and barriers 

This is a unique opportunity to contribute to a group of charities in England working together to help people living with long-term, multiple health needs to live well and thrive. You can stand up for other people with long-term conditions and help us to tackle a long-standing issue that affects millions of people in England.  

• Preparation for any meetings/events/roles; including agendas and any pre-reading/briefings required. More accessible versions will be provided as necessary.  
• Pre-meets and debriefings from any meetings/events/roles as a group or 1-2-1 basis should you wish.
• Flexibility in meeting/opportunity set-ups and support to ensure access and meaningful participation.
• Any travel expenses will be paid for or reimbursed.
• Connections with our partner charities for further support if you live with a health condition which they have expertise in.  
• Necessary support and resources to help you in your role.  

Please note: When payments are made in recognition of a contribution of time and expertise, they count as income and are therefore covered by the tax and benefit rules around declaration of earnings.  It is important to understand that they may impact the amount of tax you need to pay and the amount of benefits you are entitled to. We cannot give advice on individual tax and benefit positions and therefore it is your responsibility to ensure that you are aware of the tax and benefit implications. If you need advice speak to your local Benefits Advisor, Citizens Advice Bureau or see the information on the Gov.uk website. 

The Lived Experience Network is a group of individuals who all live with long-term health conditions, or care for someone who does. Together, you bring a wealth of experience. 

Our definition of ‘being physically active’ is not limited to structured exercise, gym attendance or sports, rather it emphasises movement in everyday life and being physically active in a way that works for you. We are particularly keen to involve people with lower levels of physical activity and movement, or who have changed the way they are active in connection with living with a condition or symptoms.  We also want to ensure that we get diverse views, so we strongly encourage people from all walks of life to apply – including people from less affluent backgrounds, older adults, and those from ethnic minority communities.

We welcome all applications of interest and are especially interested in working with people who may be from under-represented communities and/or backgrounds: people who can draw on their personal knowledge and insights into recognising and overcoming barriers to being physically active and share their ideas and enthusiasm to drive meaningful change through helping to shape our physical activity programme work.

We are committed to ensuring that our recruitment is fair, safe and consistent. We’ll keep the application process simple and fair. Some ad-hoc roles may require a more in-depth selection process, and someone from the programme team will be able to explain more about this as required.  

While we aim to involve as many voices as possible, not everyone who expresses interest will be invited to join the full network right away. This is to ensure we can offer meaningful and manageable opportunities for everyone involved.

Who are we?

The Richmond Group of Charities is a coalition of 15 national health and care charities, working together to support people living with long-term conditions.

One of our focus areas is physical activity as part of good self-management for people with one or more long term conditions. We influence policy and practice to improve how people with long-term conditions are supported to be active in ways that suit. Through this work we especially want to reach those of us who are less active and may face more barriers.

Part of the programme is “We Are Undefeatable” – a public-facing campaign sharing real stories from people living with long-term conditions. It helps change the way we talk about physical activity and provides practical tools and resources that help people find a way to move more in a way that suits them.

Our physical activity programme is funded by Sport England and runs from April 2025 to March 2028. It’s shaped by the voices of people with lived experience, and we’re committed to making sure those voices are at the heart of everything we do – from planning to delivery – to help make being active easier for everyone.

The programme is kindly hosted by Age UK, as a Richmond Group of Charities coalition member, and as such, we work in accordance with Age UK policies and guidelines and communications will come to you from an Age UK email address.

Applying: We know that completing digital written forms is not easy for everyone, so if you or a friend/family member/carer wishes to, do not hesitate to contact us and we would be more than happy to go through the form on the phone with you.

If you would rather complete the application form via video, or would like to complete it as a word-form we can provide the information in a format to enable it.  

Once we have received the necessary number of applicants, we will draw up a shortlist and invite selected applicants for an informal video or phone discussion, which would be scheduled in early December 2025.