Citizens’ Jury on pain management

Health Innovation North East and North Cumbria (HI NENC) faced a complex, long-standing challenge in tackling some of the highest rates of opioid prescription in England. This issue was especially prevalent in areas of high deprivation.

 

Recognising the need for a solution with public legitimacy, HI NENC commissioned Olovus to run a Citizens’ Jury. This is a powerful deliberative method that delivers meaningful, co-produced policy recommendations. The process resulted in six actionable recommendations. These include a strong public-backed call for local, community-based multidisciplinary hubs. These recommendations now form the blueprint for HI NENC’s regional pain improvement programme.

 

Citizens’ Juries are a proven, deliberative method. We give people the time, tools and support to explore complex issues. This allows them to shape recommendations that hold weight with decision-makers. We delivered the process while working alongside partners and lived experience advocates across the system.

 

We selected 14 jurors from nearly 300 applicants across the region. We designed a fair and inclusive recruitment process to reflect the diversity of the population. This included diversity across age, gender, geography, ethnicity, caring roles, education level and lived experience of persistent pain. Support was provided throughout to ensure people could participate fully. This support included travel, accommodation, access adjustments, and payment for their time.

 

Jurors engaged in over 35 hours of online and in-person deliberation. They heard from 17 expert witnesses including clinicians, commissioners, public health specialists, psychologists, voluntary sector leaders, and people with lived experience. Together, they explored the science of pain, prescribing patterns, the role of culture and stigma, and what a better future could look like.

 

An independent Oversight Group provided assurance and strategic input, with representatives from across the NHS, academia, the voluntary sector, and people with lived experience.

 

Through group work, feedback, and facilitated discussion, the Jury agreed six recommendations:

 

• A social marketing campaign to reframe pain and reduce stigma
• Mandatory training for professionals
• Local, community-based multidisciplinary pain hubs
• Recognition of persistent pain as a long-term condition
• Ongoing dialogue with commissioners to review progress
• A new National Pain Institute to drive research and innovation

 

The call for pain hubs was developed independently by all three jury groups. This provides a strong signal of its importance.

 

The recommendations from the Jury are now feeding into HI NENC’s regional pain improvement programme. For Olovus, this project stands as a reminder of what’s possible when we trust the public to help shape policy. This wasn’t just about raising awareness, it was about listening deeply, redistributing power, and co-producing meaningful solutions.

 

Victoria Strassheim, Programme Manager at HI NENC, said:

“Olovus’s friendly and approachable team fostered effective collaboration, and their expertise in involving people with lived experience was vital. I am proud of the co-produced recommendations we’ve achieved, I’m confident they will help improve the management of persistent pain across the region.”

 

Professor Denis Martin, Teesside University, said:

“The process created space for meaningful conversation and led to well-founded, resilient recommendations. Jurors became active participants in shaping future services.”

 

Caroline Latta, Director at Olovus, said:

“We’re so proud of this project. It showed how people, when given the right conditions, can grapple with complexity and come up with bold, practical ideas. Huge thanks to our 14 incredible jurors and to the HI NENC team for putting their trust in the process.”

 

This project is aligned with the ten‑year transformation set out in the 10-Year Health Plan, supporting the shift from hospital‑based to community‑centred care, and reinforcing the focus on prevention by helping people living with persistent pain to access non‑drug, integrated solutions.

 

By embedding meaningful public involvement and co‑production in the design of pain management services, the project supports the NHS’s ambition for greater legitimacy, transparency, and patient‑centred decision-making, which is central to both the NHS’s long‑term plan and the current operational priorities.