In their four years together, Voices for a Better Future have created hope, support and connection. They help to shape services and advocate for change, all while supporting each other in their own personal journeys. Here, members reflect on what the group means to them.
Joyce
“Being part of a lived experience group to help other survivors has helped me to come to terms with my past. Helping others through Future Pathways has turned a negative into a positive.”
Joyce took part in our VOICES film series, sharing key moments of her life and showing how determination can bring change.
George
“It’s coming up to nearly four years since we started Voices for a Better Future and what a journey of joy, love, understanding and kindness working with these members of VFABF.
Voices for a Better Future is about what we, as a member, and what other people, need and help.
It took a long time getting there but, with the members of VFABF and Future Pathways members, we found something that can help other people and that was Peer Support. Yes, it took some time but Rome was not built in a day. As a member of VFABF I take no credit and I can safely say nor do my friends in VFABF take the credit. I know that I and members of VFABF and Future Pathways are looking forward in the next journey to come.”
Yvonne
Being in a lived experience group is the moment you realise that the heaviest things you have carried are not just burdens; they are gifts for people who are still feeling lost in the dark. It is the healing power of finally sitting in a room where you don’t have to translate your pain or apologise for your truth. Because everyone there” just knows”.
In the group, we take our scars and turn them into stars to steer by, so that your hardest chapters weren’t for nothing. It’s about reaching back into the person behind you and saying ‘I’ve been where you are, we are here for each other; you don’t have to walk this journey alone.’
Yvonne took part in our VOICES film series. She talks about seeking acknowledgement and speaking up for others.
Pauline
“Future Pathways has helped me grow, rediscover myself, and take part in life again. Over the past four years with the Voices group, I’ve seen how far we’ve come together. We’ve become a strong, compassionate team—here not for ourselves, but for the many others in the care‑experienced community, young and old.
Hope has been the thread running through all of this. It’s carried me, it’s carried us, and it continues to guide the work we do. Scotland has led the way in recognising that care experience is lifelong, and I’m proud to be part of a group that stands together with empathy and purpose.
Thank you to every member of staff at Future Pathways for your dedication and for helping make all of this possible. With the growth of peer‑to‑peer groups and new developments ahead, we’re moving forward with strength and belief.
And always—hope heals hearts.”
Pauline also took part in our VOICES film series. Find out more about how she uses her voice to advocate for care experienced people.
Some members of Voices for a Better Future chose to write longer reflections. View more below.
Jeanette reflects on being part of Voices for a Better Future. She talks about speaking up, sharing experiences and helping to improve services for others.
Being part of a lived experience voice group is important to me as someone who is care experienced because it means people like me finally have a say in decisions that affect our lives. Too often, decisions are made about care experienced people without actually listening to us. The group creates a space where our voices are heard, respected, and taken seriously. It also helps build a sense of belonging, knowing I’m not alone and that others understand my experiences.
Being part of the group has made me feel more confident in speaking up and sharing my experiences. It’s helped me see that what I’ve been through can be used in a positive way to help improve things for others. I feel more empowered and valued, rather than just being seen as my past. It’s also helped me connect with others who are care experienced, which has reduced feelings of isolation and helped me grow personally.
People who are care experienced understand what it’s really like to go through the system, so they can give honest and practical feedback. We can point out what actually works and what doesn’t, and suggest changes that would make a real difference. By being involved, we can help make services more supportive, understanding, and focused on the needs of the individual. Our experiences can help professionals see things from a different perspective and improve how they support others in care.
Jeanette shares a photo: ‘A special place to me: I love the sea and sunsets.’
Bradley reflects on his time with Voices for a Better Future. He talks about learning people skills, gaining strength and becoming more open. He also talks about the ways services must listen to people with lived experience so they can truly meet people’s needs.
The real vibe is alive. None of us get a light: we have to discuss why we are here to give us confidence and strength in our life’s experiences. It is strong and powerful and, if you can contain these things, I can too and I will take them with me.
The damages are for life but, with shared experience, we can reach out and spark the change. We can encourage people to report to the police and go down the road of seeking justice. This can feel like an uphill battle and can make turmoil – someone may not have been accused before and it’s your statement, only you, that speaks up.
The group is diverse. At first, we had difficulties adjusting so there were teething problems. A few people left, including myself, but staff went out of their way and skilfully pulled us all back in again. What I have gotten out of this is that I’m learning people skills, going out my comfort zone. I have faced hostilities before and know the best way to deal with it is to offer words of encouragement. Most people, including myself, have been shut down before and the feeling of anger can come. But any ill feeling slowly drifts away and all is well.
Simmering at the bottom of all our hearts is the knowledge of our experience. And, in the wee small hours when I wake and lie there, I think ‘it’s not bad’ as I can think to myself of the good moments on our life. Joining the group has made me stronger. I am more open and becoming more selective in what I say. I’m trying to articulate my words to a form of excellence. At the same time, I feel the group’s silent aura giving me strength, combined with a settling peace and assurance that I’m not alone.
Services need to listen to people with lived experience. For example, I have been dealing with a council after they were called out for negligence in their duty of care. It took me a long time to get details about their policies around strangers being allows to take foster children on holiday. The Information Commissioner’s Office stepped in and asked for that council to reply to my request. However, the policies I was wanting to see – from 1988 to 1990 – were not available. So, the ICO and myself asked for all the policies before 1988 and after 1990. This was really important to me because it related to the time where services failed to protect me.
Services need to treat people with respect. I spoke to a social worker recently and I noticed her tone and it made me feel a sense of disrespect. I told her that I have four decades of experience with social workers and I do not want to be misled. Maybe a lot has changed since the 1990s but I feel that attitudes still need to modernise.
It’s important to use your voice if you can. I have raised complaints with services before and challenged them. This can feel really difficult, especially when you have already gone through painful experiences. But when you are seeking information about yourself, or that relates to your life, then I feel I should not go away. I will continue to sit patiently at the doors of services until I have the information that belongs to me.
Bradley also took part in our VOICES film series, bringing together messages of resilience, change, determination, hope, healing and inspiration.
Anne talks about being part of Voices for a Better Future and what this means to her. She talks about improving services for others, like projects with Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and Information Commissioners Office.
My name is Anne, and I have been a member of Voices for a Better Future since its creation in 2022. I joined because I was passionate about creating meaningful change for survivors of the care system. The group’s purpose—to provide a strategic platform where people with lived experience can influence and contribute to policy development and decision-making—strongly resonated with me.
At the time I joined, I was looking for something constructive to focus on, as I had been dealing with challenges in my personal life. With the support of Future Pathways, including counselling and assistance with a house move, I was able to overcome many of those difficulties. This put me in a position where I felt ready to engage in something positive, and VFABF provided exactly that opportunity.
As part of the group, I have been involved in a number of important initiatives. Alongside others, I worked with the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service to examine the experiences of survivors navigating the justice system. Through this partnership, we contributed to efforts aimed at improving how survivors are supported throughout court processes.
I also shared my experiences with the Information Commissioner’s Office, in their Better Records Together campaign. I spoke to them regarding the challenges of accessing my in-care records. This was an important opportunity to highlight barriers and advocate for improvements in information access for others in similar situations.
In addition, our group has been involved in the development of peer support networks, which are now successfully operating across Scotland. I feel very privileged to be part of a group made up of individuals with lived experience of the care system. Through this work, I have not only contributed to change but also learned a great deal from both fellow members and the organisations that have supported us by sharing their knowledge and work with survivors.
Through Voices for a Better Future, Rikki finds support, strength and connection. Through shared lived experience, the group can walk a path together.
Being part of Voices for a Better Future has felt like opening a box of Quality Street — all different shapes, all different colours, all individuals who somehow found themselves in the same place. Our paths never crossed before, yet 40 or 50 years ago each of us walked away from the lives that hurt us.
In Voices, I never felt alone. Speaking about my past helped me walk back into those memories as the grown‑up me, finally seeing the bigger picture and finding the missing pieces of the jigsaw. It gave me a confidence I had always questioned. This group has been a home for my heart and my head to heal. It helped me step out of that lifelong alert mode.
Through grounding, acceptance, and the healing I found at places like Lendrick Lodge, I learned that understanding my symptoms is part of understanding myself. And the truth is this: I never wanted to reach the finishing line on my own.
Healing isn’t something I want to keep to myself. My tears have been the water that mixed with the cement — building something that will last, not just for me but for the people coming behind me.
Lived experience groups matter because those of us who have walked the long road can turn back, wait for the others, and walk with them. It would feel wrong to leave anyone on this path alone. That’s why Voices has been so important to me — it’s where healing becomes something we share.
Below: Rikki shares his Reiki certificate, an important part of his healing journey.
