Collective Care

Care is something that sits at the heart of visiting.

Self-care is important, but this should exist within a broader network of care - whether this is with your visitor group or your friends, family and wider support network.

Collective care recognises human interdependence, and the fact that people have always relied on others for support and survival. Struggling with visiting is not a personal failure but a natural response to a challenging environment.

‘I am because we are’

Ubuntu philosophy

A collective approach to wellbeing shifts this focus away from ‘individual resilience’ towards shared responsibility.

In practice, this can look like:

Identifying your support network

• Naturally, most people will already draw on both formal and informal supports in their life. Knowing who you can reach out to ahead of time might make this feel less overwhelming in the moment.

• Groups are organised in different ways and the support they provide varies, but it is important to see what these options are by asking your group co-ordinator. These can include access to individual support, group supervision or counselling.

Checking in with other people

The impacts of visiting can be cumulative and it can be hard to identify any changes when you are experiencing stress. Asking trusted people if they have observed any changes to your wellbeing or behaviour can help create accountability for both self and collective care.

Nurturing spaces for debriefing and peer support

• Other visitors will ‘get’ your experiences in ways that your friends and family might not. The connection that comes from speaking with fellow visitors can be invaluable in providing reassurance, opportunities for reflection, validation and support. Debriefs can be done with individuals or as a group. Visitor groups will have different support mechanisms in place – make sure to ask your group co-ordinator what options for support or spaces are available.

• Due to remote locations, some groups drive or take public transport together to and from their visits. This can be a great time to use intentionally – to both prepare for the visit and debrief afterwards.

• See also Support from AVID

Sharing or rotating responsibilities

• Where possible, distribute responsibilities so people have equitable ‘loads’ that they are carrying. There will be times when you’re able to give more, and times when you might have to step away from visiting or ‘give less’. This works best when people feel like they can rely on each other during these shifts and proactively plan for breaks and time off.

• As a team, it can be good to be creative in what roles exist and how these can be rotated, this might include taking a break from visiting to support with organisational roles such as fundraising, collecting in-kind donations, updating group policies or other administrative tasks.

Role model honesty and asking for help

People are more likely to admit that they are struggling, and ask for help, when this is normalised. When you are honest about how something has impacted you, and allow yourself to prioritise your own needs, you give other people permission to do the same.

Identifying and practicing boundaries

Everyone has limits on what they are able to do, and your group will have guidelines on this as well. By being clear on your own boundaries, this will nurture a culture where others can feel more confident honouring their boundaries as well. Read more in Boundaries and safeguarding.

யாதும் ஊரே; யாவரும் கேளிர்

Tamil phrase, translating to 'Every village is my village and every person is from my kin, our kin’.

“It’s not about self-care—it’s about collective care. Collective care means shifting our organizations to be ones where people feel fine if they get sick, cry, have needs, start late because the bus broke down, move slower, ones where there’s food at meetings, people work from home—and these aren’t things we apologize for. It is the way we do the work... Where we actually care for each other and don’t leave each other behind.

Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha, 'Care Work: Dreaming Disability Justice’

Visit Mental Health and Specialist Organisationsfor other organisations who provide organisational and collective care support.