This original and insightful reader provides a critical stock take of the state of user involvement and will be an important resource for students studying health and social care and social work, researchers and user activists.

Introduction: From margin to mainstream ~ Marian Barnes and Phil Cotterell; Part one: User movements: Survivors History Group takes a critical look at historians; The Nottingham Advocacy Group: A short history ~ Marian Barnes and Colin Gell; Building solidarity, ensuring diversity: Lessons from service users' and disabled people's movements ~ Peter Beresford and Fran Branfield; Service users and the third sector: Opportunities, challenges and potentials in influencing the governance of public services ~ Graham P. Martin; The capacity, impact and challenge of service user's experiential knowledge ~ Phil Cotterell and Carolyn Morris; Part one: user movements, questions for reflection; Part two: User involvement in services: Introduction ~ Marian Barnes and Phil Cotterell; Collaboration in the public services: Can service users and staff participate together? ~ Michelle Farr; Changing patterns of service user involvement 1990-2010 ~ Clare Evans and Ray Jones; Looking out from the middle: Influencing policy change through user involvement ~ Joe Duffy and Brendan McKeever; Changing minds: Unleashing the potential of mental health service users - a critical perspective on current models of service user involvement and their impact on wellbeing and 'recovery' ~ Stephanie McKinley and Sarah Yiannoullou; Moving forward: Understanding the negative experiences and impacts of patient and public involvement in health service planning, development and evaluation ~ Sophie Staniszewska, Carole Mockford, Andy Gibson, Sandy Herron-Marx, Rebecca Putz; Part two: User involvement in services, questions for reflection; Part three: User involvement in research: Introduction ~ Marian Barnes and Phil Cotterell; Young mothers' experiential knowledge and the research process ~ Geraldine Brady, Geraldine Brown, and Corinne Wilson; Involving young people in research: making an impact in public health ~ Louca-Mai Brady with Ellie Davis, Amrita Ghosh, Bhavika Surti and Laura Wilson; Projects through Partnership: Promoting participatory values throughout the research process ~ Rob Kirkwood; Involving older people: empowering engagement? ~ Elizabeth Ward and Beatrice Gahagan; 'Still out there?' Is the service user voice becoming lost as user involvement moves into the mental health research mainstream? ~ Kati Turner and Steve Gillard; Service user-led research in the NHS: wasting our time? ~ Patsy Staddon; Should we? Could we? Measuring Involvement ~ Rachel Purtell, Wendy Rickard and Katrina Wyatt; Evaluating the impact of public involvement on research ~ Rosemary Barber, Jonathan Boote, Glenys Parry, Cindy Cooper and Philippa Yeeles; Part three: User involvement in research, questions for reflection; Conclusion: Critical and different perspectives on user involvement ~ Marian Barnes and Phil Cotterell.

"This is a great book full of informative and insightful views which translate easily into the students experience and theoretical understanding" William McGovern, Northumbria University "A very valuable resource that brings service user/careers perspectives together" Ann Anka, Havering College of Further and Higher Education "Compulsory reading for anyone who's serious about research or transforming services to deliver authentic person-centred support. This book offers a unique opportunity to learn from the accumulated experience and expertise of leading service user researchers and activists along with practitioner collaborators and academic allies. " Sarah Carr, Social Care Institute for Excellence, London and Staffordshire University "A stimulating book, exploring the origins and rich diversity of service user involvement in health and social care." Ann Davis, University of Birmingham