Identifying the people you need to involve is determined by the result you are trying to achieve. Think about who you need to engage in order to achieve your objectives.
Ask yourself the following questions:
- Do you need to hear from representatives of the whole community?
- What are the demographics of that community?
- How will you reflect that mix in this work?
- Are there specific target groups?
- What ‘seldom-heard’ groups do you need to consider?
At the end of this process, you should have a profile of the people you want to recruit. For a one-off event this might be quite a loose definition of the broad demographics of the local population. For an ongoing activity, you may want something more precise. If you are planning to involve a few representatives in a group or on a decision-making body, be clear about who they are and who they speak for.
Listen to Christine Mead (NHS Hammersmith and Fulham community engagement team) talking about who you need to involve: