‘Service users should be at the heart of all we do’ What about the beginning and the end?

1. ‘Service users should be at the heart of all we do’ What about the beginning and the end? SSRG March 7th 2011

2. Heart or Start? • Measures still hang in mid air – what about the broader aspects of ‘Transparency in Outcomes’? evidence collection built on our locally identified priorities (as well as the four domains). • I want to talk about three things: • Incorporating expectations, experiences and aspirations of people into our local evidence methodology. • Hierarchies of Value and Standards • Annual Accounts

3. Performance as part of planning cycle • Old Style PAF and successors was driven by CQC, DH. • LAs now identify own priorities and manage their own performance processes (???) • Starting point is finding out what citizens, service users and carers’ expectations, experiences and aspirations

4. a Box of Frogs • Must bear in mind that: • Service users have focussed experiences • They may be angry...or easily pleased • The numbers of people interested enough to make comment is limited • Service user will disagree with each other • Also priorities are based on what service users say and: • Legislation, local priorities, local data, what staff say, money available

5. But we must ask people what they want from services... ...and incorporate what we learn into our plans. How do we do that? • Good work done in Stockport • Asking precise questions of our network of forums, community groups, partnership boards and the LINk • 2000 compliments and a complaints a year • Customer Journey Mapping (six students interviewing three carers each going through assessment) • Local research by Age UK about the quality of services where older people have been involved in planning them • Customer Experience projects • Mystery Shopping • Consultation events about how local service users want their cuts delivered (anxiety about inconsistency of reviews and workers’ experience for instance)

6. And we must observe people and observe our own behaviour But this is not just about what people say but how people ‘behave’ • First Straw (Human ethology) – How do people actually behave in getting in touch with us? Who do they confide in, what avoidance techniques are most popular with which groups, what triggers action? Who spots difficulties? • Break Points – What channel do we use for contact for what? Online, telephone, face to face, known voice or known face. People are happy with one channel for some things but not for others. Councils change channels without asking people. • Borderland – Who has responsibility for what? Dustbins, Insurance Man, SDS – Councils change borders without asking people as if it is only our business. This issue raises as much heat as services themselves.

7. Hierarchy of Value • From all this material we are devising broad hierarchies of value (i.e. what people value about our services and what they think we should be judged on). • So for older people the hierarchy includes: • Good, accessible information (this is ALWAYS top of our local lists) • Being treated with dignity • Friendly staff • Reliability in workers (e.g. They should turn up when they say they will, will take responsibility when asked) • Services that work • Care supports associated with combating isolation • For carers of people with a learning disability the hierarchy includes • A named person to contact in adult social care • Specialist social workers • Care supports associated with independence • Robust and reliable breaks for carers

8. Standards • The Hierarchies of Value should be incorporated into our service standards. • For 2011/2012 each service has been asked to devise a standard – we have asked them to identify for themselves and the public what an effective service looks like • From the standard, annual service plans are devised and evidence of the impact of the service identified.

9. Annual Account • I know of several councils producing Annual Accounts. • We are using a template for this, but now is not the time to share such templates – let a thousand flowers bloom and let’s learn later from different types of template.

10. How do we build in ‘challenge’? • We have got agreement from our LINk and Overview and Scrutiny to engage in a challenge to our draft Annual Account. • Process is to be: • Produce draft document by end April (12 pages only, but appendices or reference to other data) which goes to O and S and LINk panel – who are can then ask questions or seek clarification about data, detail, expression, jargon etc • Final document presented to LINk/O and S Panel third week in May, once data has been submitted to IC • Half day panel meeting in which challenge is put by LINk and O&S panel members to ACS senior managers . • The text, it is to be hoped, can be agreed at the panel. The group itself of panel and council managers can insert mutually agreed amendments. Disagreements expressed by the LINk/O and S or comments which the council senior managers cannot agree with must be included in an appendix to the final document (in an effect a Minority report). • Cabinet member is then asked to approve and document is published in June

11. Sharing and Caring • All councils will be testing these ideas out – let’s make sure we have processes in place arrangements for sharing learning. • Sector Leadership is rumbling together at national level - councils and others have a chance to hone up ‘Local Sector Leadership’... • ...so lets get make arrangements to stay together, share what we learn, and tell our leaders what we think works, so we are less likely to be landed by national bright sparks with junk that takes years to unpick.