Welcome to Shift CircleYou're here to shift power — not tick boxes
Shift Circle is a facilitated, online peer learning programme for people transforming decision-making in social justice organisations — away from tokenistic and hierarchical, towards participatory and community-led.
So that nothing about us is decided without us.
What is Shift Circle?A peer learning community for people shifting power
Each Shift Circle brings together a small group of people committed to learning together over time. As a Circle you'll build a relationship of support and challenge — so you can reflect honestly on your own practice, consult on each other's challenges, and take clear action.
By taking this learning and action back into each of your organisations, together you’ll build collective power to show what meaningful participation really looks like.
who it's forWho is the Shift Circle programme for?
Shift Circle is for people committed to transforming organisations so that people most affected by decisions aren't just consulted but truly listened to, valued, and given space to lead.
The programme is for you if…
You're working to centre lived experience in decision-making
You want to reflect, work through challenges, and learn from others
You're ready to challenge yourself and your organisation to share power
You understand the value of participation done well — and the harm when it isn't
You want to connect with others doing this work
You know participation is a long-term approach, not a one-off project
You're committed to ongoing anti-oppressive practice
If you have lived experience of oppression, injustice or marginalisation, you are especially welcome — this space is for you, whether or not you use that lived experience in your work.
why it mattersShifting power, shifting culture
Participation, co-production and lived experience are terms increasingly used across the voluntary and public sector - but too often they're just buzzwords for tokenistic, extractive ways of ticking a box to say communities have been involved, when they haven't. Tokenism doesn't disrupt inequality; it deepens it, and further alienates people already excluded.
Instead, many organisations need a cultural shift towards really listening to people, understanding what's already been done and what’s working in communities, and using that to change how decisions get made. There are organisations already leading with lived experience, challenging power structures, and embedded in their communities — the problem is learning from them. We need to share the reality of this work and learn through its challenges, not just success stories that hide the process.
Shift Circle is a response to that.
How it worksShift Circle blends personal, organisational & collective development
Each Shift Circle brings together around 6 people online for 9 months — learning from each other as individual practitioners, shifting their organisation's practice, and contributing to better cross-sector knowledge together.
Each Shift Circle is chosen carefully to have enough in common to connect, and enough difference to challenge — from charities to research institutes, arts & culture, health & social care, education and the public sector.
Want Shift Circle for your organisation? If you'd like to run a Circle inside your own team or network, get in touch to explore a bespoke programme.
We start with a workshop to set guiding questions and co-create a learning culture, then meet for a full morning each month, each time bringing live challenges from your work.
Through Action Learning and other facilitated peer learning processes you'll deepen your participatory practice, learn from others' insights to bring back to your organisation, and build collective wisdom around what equitable participation really looks like. Feedback is integrated throughout, so you’re co-designing your Shift Circle as we go.
Relational recruitment
Get in touch and ask any questions you have. Then fill out an Expression of Interest form, and together we'll check if it’s a good fit and agree a price.
Co-design your Shift Circle throughout
In the first session together, we explore what you’re aiming for, set shared expectations, and decide the flow and focus of your Circle. We’ll then iterate this together over each session.
A small group of around 6 peers
You'll join around six people to reflect, share and learn together — transforming your own practice and influencing your organisations along the way.
A morning together each month
Once a month you'll spend a full morning together, bringing live challenges from your work to explore through open questioning and group consulting.
Work through live challenges each time
Through Action Learning and other peer methods, you'll deepen your practice and carry others' insights back to your organisation.
Learn online over 9 months
The whole journey runs online across nine months, with the option of an in-person gathering if it feels right for the group.
The learning journeyA journey that builds over 9 months
The programme isn't a set of standalone sessions — it's a learning journey. As trust grows, the focus of your learning widens: from your own practice, to what you change in your organisation, to the ripple effects across the wider system. Each shift is introduced in turn, then runs as a thread to the end — and into your continued development beyond the programme.
Some of the methods we'll use…
Action Learning
Using exploratory questions to tackle complex, live challenges and plan next steps.
Thinking Councils
Creating space for silent reflection before responding to key dilemmas.
Wicked Questions
Holding paradox and tension to move beyond binary thinking.
Lewis Deep Democracy Debates
Surfacing minority views and the unspoken to reach more inclusive decisions.
Schwartz Rounds
Reflecting together on moments from practice that were challenging, emotional, or unresolved.
Troika Consulting
Rotating roles to offer ideas and perspectives on each other's real-time issues.
Creativity
Written and creative responses that deepen personal reflection.
Embodied practices
Movement and embodied practices to notice what's beyond words.
pricingA relational approach to sliding scale pricing
Shift Circle uses a relational, sliding-scale approach so the programme stays accessible and self-sustaining, without relying on grants. Cost should never be a barrier — together we'll agree an amount that reflects your organisation's resources and honours your commitment.
These are a guide only. If the suggested range doesn't work for you, let me know — a contribution is required to show commitment, but you won't be left to self-fund, and I'll help you make the case for budget internally.
Are you a funder? If you'd like to sponsor a place for someone from a grassroots group, get in touch.
Under £100k turnover
Suggested range: £100–£500 per participant
Grassroots, volunteer-led groups or independent practitioners.
Up to £500k turnover
Suggested range: £500–£1,000 per participant
Small charities and community organisations with some funding.
£500k–£1m turnover
Suggested range: £1,000–£1,500 per participant
Mid-sized organisations with salaried staff.
Over £1m turnover
Suggested range: £1,500–£3,000 per participant
Larger or national organisations and public bodies.
Meet your facilitatorTheodora Cadbury
Hi, I'm Theo – a peer learning facilitator and participation consultant who's spent years facilitating participatory approaches with grassroots, national and international organisations.
I’m trained in Action Learning, Lewis Deep Democracy and The Thinking Environment, and my practice draws on sociocracy and non-hierarchical organising. I’m also a queer person from a mixed heritage family who grew up in youth movements and interfaith spaces.
I’m committed to trauma-informed, anti-oppressive ways of approaching the world, and I’m constantly learning. Because to shift power, we all need to learn to do things differently.
Shift Circle is an independent programme, run with advice and support from the Co-Production Collective at UCL.
Next cohortApply now to join the next Shift Circle
From July 2026
Expressions of Interest open
Recruitment is now open — get in touch to express interest.
To 20 September
Conversations
EOIs welcome; conversations with interested participants.
By 2 October
Groups confirmed
Groups and dates confirmed.
Early 2027
Circles begin
The next cohorts start, and run to autumn 2027.
How you become part of a Shift Circle
Recruitment is relational. Each Shift Circle is chosen as a group, not just a set of individuals — a mix of peers with enough in common to connect, and enough difference to challenge and grow each other's thinking. It starts with a first enquiry and space to ask questions, followed by an Expression of Interest, then a price proposal and a conversation to talk through your participation — so each Circle forms as a committed collective.
Not sure yet? The community workshops (below) are a good way to get a feel for a Shift Circle while recruitment is open.
Community workshopsNot ready for a full Circle? Start here…
A series of community workshops for anyone wanting to explore participation and shifting power together — whether you're curious about the next cohort or just want a way in. A good taster of how a Shift Circle feels.
Next workshop – Thursday 10th September, 12 – 1.30pm.
If you’re interested but can’t make this date, register below to find out about future workshops.
What people sayIn their words
Shift Circle is a safe and uplifting space for changemakers involved in various aspects of co-production and community wealth building to come together and work through sticky issues.
Shift Circle has given me the time and space to discuss ideas and issues with peers who understand and have similar experiences, and who can challenge and shape my thinking as I move forward.
Theo didn’t just create a programme about decision-making power — they put their principles into action, holding focus groups and really listening to participants’ needs and ideas. That is co-creation!
I’m excited about the quality of conversations we can have as a collective, and the impact for the organisations we support and my own development — building connections and feeling less alone.
Theo helped build champions of participation across the organisation, including the most senior decision-makers. The programme didn’t just raise awareness; it fostered genuine commitment to embedding lived experience in all our work.
Theo is a skilled facilitator and very knowledgeable about participation. She has supported us to embed participation in our work, and her practice is rooted in a keen sense of social justice and solidarity with those experiencing systemic injustice.
Join the next Shift CircleRegister your interest
Recruitment is relational — a first email/phone conversation and the chance to ask questions, then an Expression of Interest, a price proposal and an intro call.