Imroc has been working across healthcare services, social care and voluntary services since 2007. We work in partnership with communities to develop systems, services and cultures that support recovery and wellbeing for all. Co-Production is core to everything we do. Through Co-Production we enable people who use services, work in services and live in communities to unlock and pool the strengths and talents they take for granted and create together new ways to make use of them.

Imroc has a long history of undertaking Recovery Focused research and evaluation, reviewing evidence and always basing our approach, practice, values and developments on relevant evidence. We take an inclusive approach in our definition of evidence. This means that we value evidence generated through the whole spectrum of research methodologies so long as studies are well explained, justified and reported (so that we can assess quality). Also, since we are frequently working in innovative ways that are in early stages of research, we take account of practice based evidence: what people/services tell us about what works for them.

Imroc is driven by a collective of committed individuals who embody our values of belonging, openness, quality, and equity. These values emphasise strong and trusting relationships, a willingness to learn and adapt, maintaining high standards of integrity, and celebrating and seeking diversity to co-produce systems and products that reflect the right voices to influence change. Imroc is made up of several specialised teams, each bringing a rich mix of lived and learnt experiences relevant to their portfolio of work.   

Imroc is a Registered Charity, we offer training, consultancy, thought leadership and research. We offer a wide range of opportunities for people to develop new and existing skills. Our offer includes accredited and non-accredited training, coaching, facilitated reflective spaces and continuing professional development (CPD) opportunities.

Imroc was founded in 2008 by a group of individuals with lived, life, and learned experiences. The initiative aimed to address the challenges faced by mental health organisations in embedding recovery-focused practices, conversations, and values into their services. 

On April 25th, 2024, we hosted our highly anticipated conference - it was an exhilarating experience and the energy in the room was palpable. Collaboratively, we engaged in inspiring and ground-breaking discussions, marking a thrilling step forward in shaping a brighter future for peer support.

Imroc developed the Recovery College Model, initially implemented in three demonstration sites: South West London and St George’s Mental Health NHS Trust, Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust, and Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust. This model's implementation was detailed in Imroc’s first briefing paper. Today, there are over 220 Recovery Colleges across the UK and in 26 countries worldwide.

The Imroc initiative was developed to address the challenges faced by mental health organisations in embedding recovery-focused practices into their services. Recovery is about people with mental health problems living meaningful lives, and the principles of recovery have gained international recognition. Despite this, there were no established methodologies to shift organisational cultures towards recovery-oriented practices.

Imroc has been instrumental in defining and developing recovery-focused culture and practice at personal, team, organisational, and systemic levels, both nationally and internationally. Our extensive work and partnerships have solidified our reputation as thought leaders in the mental health sector.

Imroc has established strong working relationships and delivered impactful projects across the globe, enhancing recovery-focused mental health services through training, consultancy, and collaborative research. Here are some highlights of Imroc’s international work:

Peer Support Mental Health Training Team. Imroc has been part of the peer training landscape since 2009, but this team took shape when ImROC began undertaking a significant Health Education England/NHS England-funded training programme in 2021. The team aims to exemplify the values of peer support throughout their work and offer safe and accessible training that gives Peer Support Worker’s the best possible launchpad for their careers.

Imroc has previously commented on the media exposure of appalling practice in inpatient units (Response to Dispatches – Imroc – Implementing Recovery through Organisational Change); coverage that vindicated the personal reports and cries for help from people in those services, patients, their families and staff.

The HOPE project is an international collaboration aimed at developing effective, rights-based interventions for homeless individuals experiencing distress in Ethiopia, Ghana, and Kenya. Imroc is a key partner in this initiative, leveraging its expertise in peer support training and co-production to ensure impactful outcomes.

Over the past nine years, Imroc’s work across North America has paved the way for the creation of Imroc Canada. This expansion began with the establishment of the first French-speaking Recovery College in Québec in 2019, known as the Centre d’apprentissage Santé et Rétablissement (CASR).

Imroc is collaborating with SAPOT, a Malaysian social enterprise that seeks to tackle mental health stigma through promoting recovery-focused values and elevating the voice of lived experience.

As with much of the western world the early part of the 21st century has been a time of change in the Irish mental health services. A new Mental Health Act was put in place in 2001 which facilitated the move from institutionalised medically driven care to a more recovery, social and community based approach.

Imroc is providing lived experience support for Project Fusion. Project Fusion is the effort to combine services from several NHS Trusts into one. These services include those from Solent NHS Trust, Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust, community and mental health services from Isle of Wight NHS Trust, and Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services from Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust in Hampshire.

The conclusions and recommendations of the Hewitt review focus on enabling local systems to prioritise how they use their resources to meet the needs of their local populations. Of particular interest to us at Imroc are two of their recommendations: the emphasis placed on enabling and improving whole system working, and the priority placed on health promotion and prevention.

Imroc was awarded the NHSE National Contract for training Autism Peer Support Workers and Peer Support Worker Supervisors across England in 2022 and 2023 having supported earlier work co-producing training materials and curriculum planning.

Imroc are co-producing a leadership programme in partnership with an international advisory board, and Nottingham Trent University (NTU) to support the needs of peer and lived experience leaders. This programme will offer the opportunity for people with lived experience and their allies to develop the authority and skills to occupy leadership positions within Health and Social Care organisations.