What is the Policy Insights Panel?

The Policy Insights Panel works with the Anthony Nolan Policy & Public Affairs team to influence the government, NHS, and others so that stem cell transplant patients across the UK have access to the treatment, care and support they need.

Here at Anthony Nolan, we want to ensure our influencing priorities are shaped by patients and their families and carers and focussed on what matters most to them.

Our Policy Insights Panel is a key platform through which patients, families and carers can provide independent input to our policy and public affairs activity to ensure the needs and views of patients are at the heart of our influencing.

The conversations that take place in Policy Insights Panel meetings feed into the activities we undertake to meet our policy priorities, as well as produce suggestions and ideas for new influencing activities and areas of focus. The panel provides direction and clarity to our work, ensuring that at Anthony Nolan we are working on improving the stem cell transplant and cell therapy environment in a way that is most important and impactful for patients. 

What would this involve?

Representatives will be asked to:

• Participate in group meetings, taking time to read agendas and papers in advance. Meetings take place virtually 6 times a year and last 1.5 hours. Meetings are scheduled across different days and times, including both working hours and evenings, to ensure all members are able to attend.

• Help us shape and influence the work of the organisation by providing insights into patient experience and challenging assumptions in our influencing work.

• Respond to requests for comments and feedback on an ad hoc basis. It is not essential that panel members respond to every request for comment as we understand that everyone has time constraints.

• Provide the perspective of stem cell transplant and CAR-T therapy patients when planning and analysing our influencing activities.

• Declare any conflicts of interest and keep confidential any documents or discussions that are shared in confidence.

What's in it for you?

• The opportunity to contribute to our work – By sitting on the Policy Insights Panel, you will be making an important contribution towards Anthony Nolan’s work, ensuring we are retaining focus on our overarching ambitions and targeting our resources in the right areas. This will ensure the impact of our work is maximised and the voice of our wider community is represented and understood.

• New skills and experiences – You will also have the opportunity to work alongside the Anthony Nolan Policy & Public Affairs team and learn how the organisation works behind the scenes.

• Support from Anthony Nolan – Anthony Nolan will ensure that you have all the information you need for meetings at least five working days in advance. You will also have a key contact who will be available in between meetings to answer any questions you may have.

• Renumeration - Members will be offered optional renumeration of £25 per hour of involvement in panel meetings. This payment aims to reward Policy Insights Panel members for the time, skills and expertise they contribute to meetings. Renumeration will be issued in the form of vouchers.

• Expenses – Our meetings typically take place virtually via Microsoft Teams, so do not require travel. Anthony Nolan will nevertheless cover reasonable travel, subsistence, and accommodation expenses, to ensure that you are not out-of-pocket at any point. 

What skills and experience are we looking for?

To help ensure that our appointment process is as fair and transparent as possible, we have drawn up a set of criteria which we are looking for:

• An interest in policy and public affairs and a desire to learn about the way Anthony Nolan influences for change.

• The ability to think objectively and represent the needs of all stem cell transplant and CAR-T therapy patients.

• Good listening skills and the ability to understand and respect different opinions.

In addition to this, members should be:

• In need (now or in the future) of, or have received a stem cell transplant; OR

• In need (now or in the future) of, or have received CAR-T therapy; OR

• A family member or carer for someone who needs or has received a stem cell transplant or CAR-T therapy.

Experts by experience. We are looking for people who are:

A key objective of the panel is to represent the diversity of our patients’ experience, including people who have received CAR-T therapy and people with experience of stem cell transplantation to treat a blood disorder (for example aplastic anaemia, sickle cell disease or thalassaemia).

In addition, we are prioritising members from underrepresented ethnic, economic, and educational backgrounds, and from across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Finally, members should be able to fulfil the time commitment required and be 18 years old and over.