They provide safe spaces, build connections, and bring people together around hope, healing and purpose. From running community cafés and recovery walks to leading peer support groups, sober socials and creative workshops - LEROs offer not just services, but a sense of belonging. In Derbyshire County and beyond, they reach people that clinical services often can’t, creating trust, opportunities, and second chances.

LEROs reduce isolation, empower individuals, and strengthen the very fabric of local communities. They are led by people who’ve walked the walk - and in doing so, they inspire others to believe recovery is possible too. Whether it's a weekly art group in a rural village hall, a peer-led housing project in a market town, or a pop-up event in an urban park, LEROs meet people where they are - with compassion and credibility.

What the Research Says

Academic and government research increasingly recognises the impact of LEROs:

• The UK Government’s 2021 Drug Strategy emphasised the value of lived experience and called for the expansion of recovery support services and peer-led initiatives.

• The Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) how peer-led models enhance engagement, improve outcomes, and create systems that are more equitable and person-centred.

• Studies consistently show that peer-led organisations improve outcomes, increase engagement, and foster hope and identity transformation (Best et al., 2016; White, 2009). When lived experience is recognised for its expertise there is greater trust, personal empowerment and increased community connections (Repper & Carter, 2011)  

• The College of Lived Experience Recovery Organisations (CLERO) sets national standards for LEROs and evidences their effectiveness across the UK.

In communities, including Derbyshire, LEROs have the potential to reduce pressure on clinical services, reach underserved populations, and restore a sense of community belonging for people in recovery.

Research shows that people in recovery often give more to their community through volunteering. LEROs can create the space for this to happen and these efforts to be recognised. LEROs can build villages of support, forging new friendships, connections and improving communities, with this support being shaped by the people who live there - whether that’s in a rural village, town, or busy urban borough.

A LERO is a beacon in its community. Its recovery made visible. It’s hope made practical. 

References

UK Government. (2022, April 29). From harm to hope: A 10-year drugs plan to cut crime and save lives. GOV.UK. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/from-harm-to-hope-a-10-year-drugs-plan-to-cut-crime-and-save-lives/from-harm-to-hope-a-10-year-drugs-plan-to-cut-crime-and-save-lives

Best, D., Irving, J., & Albertson, K. (2016). Recovery and desistance: what the emerging recovery movement in the alcohol and drug area can learn from models of desistance from offending. Addiction Research & Theory, 25(1), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1080/16066359.2016.1185661 

College of Lived Experience Recovery Organisations (CLERO). (2022). LERO Standards | College of Lived Experience Recovery Organisations. College of Lived Experience Recovery Organisations (CLERO). https://www.clero.co.uk/clero-standards 

Office for Health Improvement and Disparities. (2023). Recovery support services and lived experience initiatives. GOV.UK; Office for Health Improvement and Disparities. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/recovery-support-services-and-lived-experience-initiatives/part-1-introducing-recovery-peer-support-and-lived-experience-initiatives 

Repper, J., & Carter, T. (2011). A review of the literature on peer support in mental health services. Journal of Mental Health, 20(4), 392–411. https://doi.org/10.3109/09638237.2011.583947 

White, W. L. (2009). Peer-Based Addiction Recovery Support: History, Theory, Practice, and Scientific Evaluation Executive Summary. ResearchGate, 10, 54–59. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/228459175_Peer-Based_Addiction_Recovery_Support_History_Theory_Practice_and_Scientific_Evaluation_Executive_Summary