The Big Leeds Chat is the first time that all organisations in Leeds have come together to listen to local people. The aim of the event was hear what people think about living in our city and to show Leeds citizens that we are working together as one health and care system.
The event was planned by the Peoples’ Voices Group (PVG) in Leeds, a meeting for engagement leads across the city, and involved many of the organisations who plan and provide health and care services in the City. The event took place at Leeds Kirkgate market so that we could engage with (talk to) people who do not always get the chance to share their views.
The Big Leeds Chat is a ‘conversation’ about what matters to local people. The conversation focussed on, but was not limited to, health and wellbeing. We asked people three simple questions:
- What do you love about living in Leeds?
- What do you do to stay healthy?
- What would you like to see change to make Leeds an even better city to live in?
The event was focussed on people who were using the market on Thursday 11 October 2018. However, we also promoted the Big Leeds Chat widely to encourage people to drop in and share their views. The event was promoted by all our voluntary and statutory sector partners using existing community networks and social media.
We estimate that we spoke to around 500 people during the Big Leeds Chat. People told us that they love living in Leeds because the people are friendly. They also said that they enjoy living in a big and diverse city which offers great shopping and access to green spaces. People said that they look after themselves by eating healthily and exercising. Families and communities are important sources of support to people in Leeds. People said that they want access to more free or subsidised health activities and want more information about what activities are available in their local community. Getting the right healthcare quickly is important to people in Leeds, especially in mental health services. People also told us that public transport is important and that they want Leeds to be a safe place to use bikes.
We will have a full report of the Big Leeds Chat available for you to read here soon.
Check out how the day progressed in the feed below. Let us know what you thought using the comments box and join the conversation using #BigLeedsChat hashtag.