This is part 3 of a series in which Amy describes Barnado’s journey through discovery research. You could start with part 1, but what I enjoyed about part 3 was how the service designers moved beyond simply doing research with young people, to working collaboratively through the next stage in the design process, choosing where to go next.

After realizing that many services who provide care for children around Ontario were ill-prepared in caring for Black hair, the HairStory initiative was born. Over 100 Black young people shared their experiences living in various systems of care and gathered ideas about how they wished to see changes in these systems. The stories, art, recommendations… the whole report was co-designed by young people.

There’s not a word about design in here, but still, I’m sure you’ll see why it feels imperative for any designer working in healthcare to read Hannah’s piece. This is raw, emotional, angry and poignant. Hannah describes the nuances of the mental health “Conversation.” It’s my top read this week.