You Said, We Did: July-September 2026 Case Studies
WorkWell feedback in action: In 2025, we worked as part of a partnership of 14 local Healthwatch to facilitate a focus group on the topic of WorkWell, prior to its launch. WorkWell is a new service that helps people with long-term health issues and/or disabilities to find job opportunities and/or remain in work.
For the programme to be effective, it was important that it reflected the needs and experiences of the people it was intended to support. Meaningful community engagement was needed to gather local perspectives and ensure the service was designed with users in mind.
The WorkWell programme has now launched across Newcastle. The focus group provided an opportunity for local people to influence the design of the service before implementation, ensuring community voices were considered as part of the development process.
Patient safety signposting: This August, we were contacted by an anonymous patient with concerns about patient safety, NHS workforce policies and the use of non-doctor roles. Although these concerns related primarily to national policy, as Healthwatch Newcastle we listened, explained our role and recorded their feedback.
After speaking for a while with this patient, we confirmed that they were already following the correct complaints and patient safety procedures, before providing appropriate signposting information to support them in their wellbeing.
Following this conversation, they told us that they felt reassured that their concerns had been heard and valued, and were glad their feedback could contribute to Healthwatch Newcastle’s wider understanding of health and social care services while maintaining their anonymity.
You can find other examples of our work and impacts here.
