Owen WilliamsHello, my name is Owen.

Three words that have recently become firmly etched into my psyche are: “blah, blah, blah”. So, when Karen Coleman asked me to author this blog, I thought about what I might write that wouldn’t fall foul of the three “blahs” test.

So, some of you may know that in the coming weeks I will be making a career transition from white to red rose NHS country. On reflecting on this from a West Yorkshire Partnership perspective, I was taken back to an article written for the Health Services Journal by Professor Becky Malby in April 2010.

In this piece Becky commented on the “Leading as Peers” work that was taking place across the system(s) of Calderdale and Kirklees and she commented that: “Health and other public sector chief executives increasingly need to work together and leading as peers is the way to do it”.

Eleven years on my feeling is that across our West Yorkshire Partnership we have taken the concept of leading as peers and expanded it beyond that of “chief executives” - to a more inclusive leadership approach which understands that leadership and leaders can (and do) exist in every seat and at every level.

Have we arrived at an end point for our 10 big ambitions? Are we perfect in West Yorkshire? The answer is clearly no. But are we firmly on the journey of understanding and practising what it is to become effective collaborative leaders? In my opinion the answer is an unequivocal yes.

I believe that we have understood for some time that power and influence, which is derived through hierarchical organisational leadership and the size of institutions, is less capable of enacting sustainable change for the communities we serve. Whereas change which is enabled, shaped, and led by communities has much more chance of making a lasting positive difference to people from all backgrounds.

So, have we really got something going on in West Yorkshire or is this just good PR?

Well, imagine being in a place where men at risk of serious self-harm and suicide are supported; or the words from Healthwatch and the voluntary community social enterprise sector carry as much weight as any other partner contributions.

Mo Sattar wearing a root out racism badgeA place where 580 organisations and community allies wear their “Root Out Racism” badges with pride and elected members from local authorities are valued and respected for their wisdom.

A place whereby improving cancer services and delivering health equity outcomes for local people are taken very seriously and where it is made plain that social care will never be the forgotten front line.

If you can imagine this and more then you are undoubtedly experiencing what it is like to be working in West Yorkshire.

I don’t know whether these short words pass the “blah, blah, blah” test but I do know that “Sheila” will hold us all to account in doing what’s best for our fellow West Yorkers and I have every faith that we won’t let her down. And for those of you who don’t know Sheila, she was a participant at the launch of our race review in October 2020, who asked quite rightly what does it all mean for me as a citizen.

Have a good weekend all,

Owen