LELAN is the independent peak body in South Australia by, for and with people with lived experience of mental distress, social issues or injustice. Our purpose is to amplify the voice, influence and leadership of people with lived experience to drive systemic change. LELAN has led philanthropic, state and federally funded projects as well as completed commissioned and fee-for-service pieces of work.

By centering the experiences, collective insights and solution ideas of people with lived experience in all of our work, as well as being immersed in the lived experience community from grassroots to strategic levels, LELAN demonstrates the principles, practices and change dynamics that the social sector is calling for and desperately needs. Because of our strong and trusted relationships with people in the lived experience community we are able to have deeper conversations about things that matter, drawing our collective experiences and action together in purposeful ways.

LELAN has extensive experience and a proven methodology for leading lived experience-led and/or co-creation initiatives, frequently with a focus on sensitive issues and including groups that bring divergent perspectives to the conversation.

The organisation has three areas of focus:

Developing the capability and influence of people with lived experience.
Nurturing organisational and sector capacity for partnering with people with lived experience.
Impacting system improvement agendas to benefit people with lived experience.

Key published pieces of work by LELAN, including those completed in partnership, can be accessed via our shared resources page. This includes the pivotal Model of Lived Experience Leadership and Roadmap for Strengthening Lived Experience Leadership for Transformative Systems Change in South Australia, as well as the Lived Experience Governance Framework and
Lived Experience Governance Toolkit launched in mid-2023.