What does good health mean to you?
Is it being able to see a GP when you need to? Having somewhere safe and secure to live? Feeling connected to your community? Having the time, support and opportunity to look after yourself and the people you care about?
These were some of the questions explored by local people through Dare to Dream: A Journey to Health Utopia, an interactive performance bringing communities from Liverpool, Sefton and Knowsley together to talk about health, healthcare and what could be different in the future.
The performances, held from 16 to 18 September, were created with local people who shared their experiences of health and care and imagined what a healthier, fairer future could look like.
Rather than simply watching a performance, audiences were invited to join the conversation, share their views and think about the changes they would like to see.
Health is about more than healthcare
One of the strongest messages to emerge was that our health is shaped by much more than what happens when we visit a doctor or hospital.
Where we live, our financial situation, whether we have somewhere warm and secure to live, our relationships and connections with other people, and whether we have opportunities to be active and enjoy ourselves can all affect our health and wellbeing.
Creating a healthier city therefore isn’t something that can be achieved by health services alone.
It also means creating neighbourhoods where people have opportunities to connect, be active, access healthy food, enjoy green spaces and get the support they need to live well.
People want healthcare that listens
The performance also gave people an opportunity to talk honestly about their experiences of healthcare.
People reflected on challenges including waiting for appointments, accessing services and navigating digital systems. But alongside those frustrations was a clear desire for something that can sometimes get lost in a busy health system – being treated as a person, not a number or an appointment.
Listening to people’s experiences matters because local people understand the barriers they face in a way that statistics alone cannot always show.
Prevention starts in our communities
The conversations also explored what can help people stay well in the first place.
That could mean making it easier to be physically active, having access to affordable and nutritious food, getting support with mental wellbeing or having opportunities to spend time with other people.
Prevention isn’t about telling people what they should or shouldn’t do. It’s about creating the conditions and opportunities that make it easier for everyone to live healthier lives.
Local people should have a say
A key part of Dare to Dream was giving people space to think about how decisions about health and care are made, and who gets to have a say.
People who use services, alongside community groups and organisations, have valuable knowledge about what works, what doesn’t and what could be done differently.
Giving communities a meaningful role in shaping services can help make sure decisions reflect people’s real experiences and the things that matter in everyday life.
Imagining a healthier future
There wasn’t one answer to what a health utopia might look like.
For some people, it could mean easier access to healthcare. For others, it could mean stronger communities, better housing, more green space or greater opportunities to take part in sport, creativity and social activities.
For many, it comes back to the same thing – having a voice and knowing that someone is listening.
Dare to Dream created a space where those ideas could be shared, challenged and developed together.
One performance cannot transform health and care on its own. But creating opportunities for people to share their experiences and imagine what could be better is an important place to start.
Working together for a healthier Liverpool
Dare to Dream is part of ReCITE, a programme led by the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, which brings together communities, researchers, health organisations and creative partners across Liverpool, Knowsley and South Sefton.
Liverpool City Council is a partner in ReCITE, working alongside the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and other organisations to explore how creative approaches and community voices can help tackle health inequalities and build trust.
The wider project has used storytelling, creative activity and community-led approaches to explore issues including preventive healthcare, mental wellbeing and access to services.
The work has shown how bringing together people with lived experience, community organisations, health professionals, researchers and creatives can help shine a light on the barriers people face – and generate new ideas for change.
For Liverpool, this approach supports the wider ambition to build a fairer, healthier city where everyone has the opportunity to live a healthy life and local people have a meaningful role in shaping the decisions that affect them.
Dare to Dream is a reminder that creating a healthier future isn’t something that happens to communities. It happens with them.
