The value of learning to manage health from lived expertise is well recognised globally, pioneered by voluntary and third-sector organisations. New and inclusive ways to help society manage mental health are needed. 4 Health services are already unable to meet demand. Indeed, following the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, rates are likely to increase.

3 Despite drug treatments and psychological interventions on offer, there is no evidence of these rates reducing.

Individual stakeholder interviews will help refine and test theories (2) data from workstream 1 will inform 10 EBCD workshops with people with experience of managing mental health difficulties and health professionals to produce a LoLEM implementation guide data from this process will also inform the theory in workstream 1.Īpproximately one in six adults and children in the UK experience mental health difficulties at any one time, 1 2 with similar rates reported around the world. Two workstreams will run concurrently: (1) a realist synthesis of literature on living libraries, combined with stakeholder interviews, will produce several programme theories theories will be developed collaboratively with an expert advisory group of stakeholders who have hosted or taken part in a living library and will form our initial analysis framework a systematic search will identify literature about living libraries data will be coded into our analysis framework, and we will use retroductive reasoning to explain living libraries’ impacts across multiple contexts. Methods and analysis We will use a novel integration of realist synthesis and experience-based codesign (EBCD) to produce a programme theory about how living libraries work and a theory and experience informed guide to establishing a library of lived experience for mental health (LoLEM). Correspondence to Dr Fiona Lobban f.lobbanlancaster.ac.uk.11 Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Nord University, Namsos, Norway.10 Institue of Mental Health, University of Nottingham School of Health Sciences, Nottingham, UK.9 Faculty of Health and Medicine, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK.8 Lancaster Medical School, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK.7 Department of Psychiatry, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.6 Independent survivor researcher, Lancaster, UK.5 Patient Experience, Engagement & Safeguarding, Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust, Preston, UK.4 Health Education England North West, Manchester, UK.3 Freelance participatory artist, Lancaster, UK.2 Lancaster University Library, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK.1 Division of Health Research, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK.

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