Ten years ago today, I walked away from a successful career in public services.
On paper, it probably looked like an odd decision. I had spent years working in public service, supporting people and communities, and building a career that many would have seen as secure and sensible. I had worked my way up to a director level role and finally had a permanent contract. But something was missing.
I had become increasingly interested in the spaces between organisations, communities, sectors and systems. I was curious about how change really happens, why some ideas take hold while others don’t, and what becomes possible when people are given the opportunity to connect, learn, create and act together. So, I took a leap into the unknown.
I couldn’t have predicted where that decision would lead.
Today, as I look back over the last decade, I feel incredibly proud of what we have built through CollabOutLoud.
What started as a belief that there had to be different ways of working has grown into an organisation that works alongside communities, organisations, partnerships and systems to create what we describe as surprising, simple and social spaces for social innovation and change.
What I’m Most Proud Of
Over the last ten years I have had the privilege of:
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- Co-founding and growing CollabOutLoud into a trusted learning and thinking partner for communities, organisations, partnerships and systems.
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- Designing and facilitating hundreds of conversations that have helped people move from frustration and complexity towards action and possibility.
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- Supporting leaders, community members, researchers, practitioners and changemakers to build confidence, strengthen relationships and create meaningful change.
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- Championing lived experience, participation and fair exchange, ensuring people’s knowledge, insight and expertise are valued and acted upon.
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- Bringing together research, practice and community knowledge to create learning, innovation and impact.
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- Building communities of learning and action across neighbourhoods, places and systems.
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- Having countless cups of tea and coffee that turned into partnerships, projects, friendships and movements for change.
Some of the most meaningful achievements aren’t the reports, projects or contracts. They are the relationships. The people who trusted us. The communities who welcomed us. The conversations that sparked something new.
What I’ve Learned Along The Way
Ten years of building something has taught me more than I could have imagined.
I’ve learned that:
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- Relationships are the work. Change happens at the speed of trust.
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- Communities already hold the answers. Our role is often to create the conditions where wisdom, experience and ideas can surface.
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- Complex problems rarely have simple solutions. But people can make sense of complexity together when given the right space and support.
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- Leadership is not about position. Some of the most powerful leadership I have witnessed has come from residents, volunteers, lived experience leaders and people who never saw themselves as leaders.
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- Learning out loud matters. Sharing what is working, what isn’t working and what we are discovering helps others learn with us.
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- Kindness is not a soft skill. It is one of the most powerful tools for creating change.
A New Chapter
The timing feels particularly special because today also gives me an opportunity to share our new website. It has only taken me ten years to finish……
The new site brings together the thinking, learning, projects, stories, approaches and offers that have emerged from ten years of practice. It’s a reflection of where we’ve come from and where we’re heading next.
You’ll find our growing portfolio of work across:
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- Leadership
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- Community engagement and participation
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- Research and knowledge brokering
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- Creative and inclusive spaces
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- Systems and place-based change
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- Creative co-design and innovation
Most importantly, you’ll find the values and principles that sit at the heart of everything we do.
The Six Principles That Continue To Guide Us
As we’ve grown, these principles have remained our compass:
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- Out Loud and Amplify – We share learning openly, amplify ideas and voices, and recognise those who inspire and support us.
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- Community and Spaces – We create spaces built on trust, empathy, belonging and shared purpose.
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- Difference and Democracy – We actively seek diverse perspectives and create opportunities for shared and democratic decision-making.
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- Generosity and Kindness – We believe in sharing what we have, creating cultures of care and supporting one another to thrive.
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- Make It Real – We learn by doing. We test ideas, explore possibilities, spread what works and learn from what doesn’t.
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- Fair Exchange – We value people’s contributions, remove barriers to participation and strive to create equitable relationships where power, knowledge and reward are shared fairly.
The Freedom To Build A Life, Not Just A Career
One of the things I rarely talk about when reflecting on the last ten years is the freedom this journey gave me outside of work. When I left my career in public services and stepped into the unknown, I wasn’t just creating a different way of working. I was creating a different way of living.
Over the last decade I have had the privilege of building a business while also building a family. My daughter is now eight years old, and one of the things I am most grateful for is the time and space I have been able to spend with her during those formative years. That has been good for me, good for her and, I would argue, good for society.
We often talk about productivity, growth and economic contribution, but we don’t talk enough about the value of being present in our children’s lives, supporting families, caring for one another and creating work that fits around life rather than asking life to fit around work. Of course, it hasn’t always been easy.
Like many working mothers, I have memories of expressing milk in borrowed meeting rooms and senior leaders’ offices between meetings. I navigated client work, deadlines, sleepless nights and nursery runs. There were days when it felt messy and imperfect. But I made it work.
Looking back, I feel incredibly proud that I didn’t have to choose between having a career and having a family. I was able to do both. I also recognise that this is not a reality available to everyone, nor is it what everyone wants. Not everyone has the opportunity, resources or circumstances that make this possible, and not everyone’s aspirations include parenthood.
But I do believe we need to do more to create a society where women and men have genuine choices. Where people can build meaningful careers, raise families if they choose to, care for those they love, and still pursue their ambitions. Where flexibility, trust and humanity are not treated as benefits, but as foundations of good work.
In many ways, the success of the last ten years isn’t just what we’ve built through CollabOutLoud. It’s that I’ve been able to build a life that feels aligned with my values, one where purpose, family, contribution and wellbeing are not in competition with one another.
Looking Forward
Ten years ago, I thought I was taking a risk by leaving public services. Looking back, it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. It gave me the opportunity to co-found CollabOutLoud, work alongside incredible communities and partners, and contribute to change in ways I could never have imagined.
But it also gave me something equally valuable/ Freedom. Freedom to build a life as well as a career, to be present for my family, to continue learning, and to work in ways that align with my values.
If the last ten years have taught me anything, it’s that meaningful change happens when we create the conditions for people to thrive, whether that’s in communities, organisations or families. Here’s to the next chapter.
