Serco

Project Details

Client : Serco - Public Services

Sector: Government and Outsourced Services

Focus: Embedding lived experience in business development and modern slavery strategy

Duration: 18-months

WHAT OUR CLIENTS SAY

Collaborating with the incredible team at Align - and the courageous individuals with lived experience - was not just a privilege, it was transformative. From the very first conversation, their voices brought authenticity, depth, and humanity to our work, turning a complex process into a shared mission. Their openness and honesty illuminated perspectives that no data or policy could ever capture, and their passion amplified the impact of every discussion.

Phill and Sarah from Align were exceptional guides, helping us navigate sensitive topics with empathy and respect. They ensured that every practice, every word, honoured the dignity of those whose experiences shaped our understanding. This was invaluable in a space often clouded by misconceptions and silence around modern slavery and exploitation.

I cannot recommend Align highly enough. Their professionalism, profound sector knowledge, and unwavering commitment to ethical practice make them an extraordinary partner for any organisation seeking to create real change. Align doesn’t just consult—they champion voices that have too often gone unheard and turn them into catalysts for progress. They are a beacon for the sector and for the individuals they serve.

Kurtis Browning - Solution Lead

Serco Overview

Embedding lived experience into public service design

Serco partnered with Align to develop a pioneering lived experience-led approach within its business development strategy for a major UK Government tender. By embedding the voices of people directly affected by frontline services into every stage of the process, Serco strengthened the credibility, relevance, and human impact of its proposal.

Challenge

Putting service users at the heart of business growth

Serco sought to embed the voice of lived experience at the heart of a large UK Government tender process. The company wanted its bid to be informed by people who had direct experience of the incumbent service—its strengths, gaps, and its impact on those most
affected. Their goal was to ensure that the future service design not only met technical and policy requirements but also reflected the insights of end users who had navigated the existing system.

Our Approach

Building trust through cocreation and safeguarding best practice

Serco engaged Align at the outset of the tender preparation. Working closely with Serco’s business development and operational teams, Align identified individuals across a broad demographic who had lived experience of the current service environment.

Align then facilitated a mixed-methods research project, supporting participants with welfare provision before and after all engagements to ensure ethical participation and psychological safety. Insights gathered from this phase revealed actionable perspectives on how services could be improved from the users’ own viewpoint.

Serco, inspired by the findings, commissioned Align to integrate a Lived Experience Advisory Team to work alongside internal teams throughout the tender process. Align convened focus groups, roundtables, and co-design sessions to connect lived experience consultants with Serco’s subject matter experts and key stakeholders. Together they examined sector policies, regulatory and legislative frameworks, and risk factors affecting both the delivery model and user outcomes.

The Outcome

Authentic, user-centred service design.

Through this collaboration, Serco ensured that lived experience insight shaped decision-making from the very start of the bid. Align’s structured support model upheld the highest standards of welfare, ethics, and safeguarding, giving the bid team confidence to engage meaningfully and respectfully with lived experience consultants as equal partners.

The process generated strong internal and external buy-in—enthusing Serco’s business units, influencing sector partners, and deepening stakeholder trust. Most importantly, the approach drove service design that was genuinely user-centred, grounded in the real experiences, challenges, and aspirations of the people the service aims to support.