Lay representatives

Health Education and Improvement Wales (HEIW) has a pool of lay representatives who are fully impartial and independent and able to represent the voice of the public.

Their role is to oversee that arrangements, policies and procedures are robust, transparent and fair and that a process of accountability is in place. They are involved in a number of processes such as recruiting to postgraduate medical and dental training programmes, monitoring the progress of a trainee through such a programme and managing the quality of the training that is offered. Lay representatives act as independent and impartial advisors to these processes and help to ensure that they remain fair and non-discriminatory. They help to maintain the quality of training and to verify that all relevant standards are being met, enhancing the accountability of the panels and committees involved and questioning assumptions where relevant. As an independent voice, lay representatives should provide an external view on HEIW processes and help to ensure that decision-making is consistent, robust and transparent.

The core processes involving lay representatives are as follows;

• recruitment interviews
• annual review of competence progression (ARCP)
• appeal panels
• quality visits
• committees/meetings, including:
  • Pharmacy Advisory Groups
  • Quality Committee (or whatever replaces it)
  • commissioning.

HEIW are always keen to appoint more Lay representatives.

If you are interested in becoming a lay representative the role descriptor and details of how to apply can be found on the becoming a lay representative page.