As a ‘professional’ working in the field of mental health, we can often be invited to be the experts of our client’s lives. This workshop will be an opportunity for participants to explore the practices of client-directed pathways of recovery for people living with significant mental health concerns. Participants will be provided opportunities to step back from “expert-driven ways” of working to explore the practices co-creating the “insider-knowledges” of the people we work with. A range of strengths based and narrative ideas will be explored. Practice examples will be shared to demonstrate how to make visible client’s insider knowledge during “assessment” and “intervention” processes. Participants will expect to have a range of opportunities to “have-a-go” at putting these ideas into practice.

At the completion of this workshop, participants will have:

• Explored Conditions for Client directed recovery
• Reflected on potential obstacles to strengths based and narrative practice approaches in the field of mental health
• A comprehensive understanding of what insider knowledges are, and how we can access “insider-knowledges” of the people we work with
• Review strengths based and narrative ideas for assessment, intervention and documenting processes
• Participants will have an opportunity to reflect on how these ideas relate to their own work.