Independent & Trauma Informed Consultancy and Commissions

**Open for independent, bespoke and short-term (max 6-9 months) consulting and commissions. To discuss your project, programme or tender, including bespoke or tailored commissions, contact Candy Dowson on 07933 299 266 or via email**

Examples of short-term and bespoke Consultancy Services available: 

• project, service or programme evaluation and management;
• trauma-informed leadership and evaluation/reviews; 
• bespoke and innovative pathway/service design and development;
• support to Systems Change and Transformation reviews;
• independent reporting and insights gathering; 
• facilitation of transformative focus groups, seminars and workshops;
• grassroots engagement leadership with experts-by-experience or co-design with people who have lived experience; 
• community engagement and qualitative reporting; 
• training needs development and design e.g. implementation of reflective practice and staffing support/training to deal with exposure to trauma, burnout, compassion fatigue, vicarious trauma, and traumatic incidents - e.g. through sustainable, peer-led and holistic approaches;
• feasibility studies and maturity matrixes relating to trauma-informed practice;
• bespoke work and input themed around trauma-informed practice and trauma-integrative ways of working / evolution.

Summary

Through Arras Healing, I offer independent consultancy to businesses, communities and organisations, with the added bonus of my 10 years' experience of PRINCE2 programme management. 

Due to my array of professional experience, I am able to provide a unique, relational and holistic offer to businesses and organisations that is difficult to find anywhere else. 

I believe that the future lies in trauma integration and resolution at scale across organisations, societies and countries and I am excited to be a part of that growing movement.

Recent Projects

Recent projects 2022-present:

• A trauma-informed service evaluation and report for the NHS Homeless Mental Health Service in Hull, East Yorkshire (2022). This identified good practice, emergent areas of work, and recommendations for future development of homelessness services;
• I provided short-term and interim support as Consultant Programme Lead to the Trauma Informed City initiative in Hull, part of Changing Futures and Hull City Council (Nov22-Jan23);
• I led the development and authoring of the public health needs assessment into multiple unmet needs for Hull City Council, due to be published in January 2024. This included platforming the voices of clients and patients, reaching people and communities facing the most extreme health inequalities, and preparing trauma-informed and holistic recommendations for Hull to take forward as a city (Feb23-Dec23). Multiple unmet needs is sometimes also referred to as inclusion health or severe and multiple disadvantage;
• I am currently working part-time in the NHS to deliver transformation in intermediate care services, working cross-organisationally with health and social care (June 2024-present). 

Consultant Bio / About

Hi, I'm Candy Dowson, and I am the Independent Consultant and Facilitator here at Arras Healing. I have 7 years' experience of working within Statutory Services at a senior level and an additional 6 years spent learning my craft in other sectors (the voluntary/VCSE/third sector). I have fantastic and valuable experience of designing and reviewing inter-sector services for vulnerable communities and those from protected groups (per Equality Act, 2010), and for people who are on the margins of society.

I've been working in a consultancy role with public sector organisations since 2022, following my departure from the NHS to set up Arras Healing. I can offer strategic input into services and programmes coming from a partnership ethos and compassion-based approach. I'm particularly passionate about how we can nurture 'healing communities,' unpick and resolve traumatisation in our structures, and bring trauma-informed leadership into mainstream awareness and systems transformation.

I am well acquainted throughout North Yorkshire, York and the Humber, plus parts of West Yorkshire, and I can help to unlock innovative and creative "outside of the box" leading-edge thinking for businesses and organisations, creating the right spaciousness and conditions for this brave work to take place.

Testimonials:

"Arras Healing undertook an independent review of an NHS commissioned service.  It has been a pleasure to work with Candy who has gone to great lengths to extract and draw out service user and stakeholder feedback and experience. She has done this in a compassionate way, taking the time to spend with the operational aspect of the service and speaking to service users.  The outcome report is very thorough, considered and thought provoking in terms of next steps and how we progress as a system to work together and what we may want to focus on.  I would recommend Candy to other organisations on such work and I am really pleased what she has been able to do on behalf of our local service."  ~ Toni Yel, Head of Integrated Commissioning, NHS Hull Health and Care Partnership 

"It has been an absolute pleasure from start to finish working with Candy. She is able to effortlessly combine sharp and well-honed programme management expertise with a trauma informed lens and insight - which provides an enriching, unique and transformational approach to her consultancy work. We would recommend anyone looking for someone to carry out consultancy work, be it specifically or not with this enriching insight, to consider working with Candy – we didn’t want to see her go."  ~ Dr Lucy Chiddick, Hull and Humber & North Yorkshire NHS Health and Care Partnership, Clinical Lead for Inclusion Health

"Candy was commissioned to ensure the voices and experiences of people living and working with multiple unmet needs could be heard, captured and presented in a way that would make a lasting difference to how we plan and design services in Hull. She was able to articulate those experiences and needs for a wide audience, and her work will be influential for many years to come." ~ Helen, Public Health Consultant, Hull City Council

If you would like to set up an exploratory discussion or meeting please contact hello@arras-healing.co.uk with some details or phone 07933 299 266.

Please note Arras Healing is the trading name of Candice Dowson, a registered sole trader.