No One Left Behind User Experience Research
This report presents findings from a survey and qualitative research with service users of No One Left Behind funded support services across Scotland. It provides insights into service user experiences with a particular focus on parents, disabled people and people from a minority ethnic background.
4. Conclusions – lessons learned
The evidence gathered through this evaluation has identified several lessons to help shape the future of the Employability Child Poverty Coordinator role, or any similar roles, in future. Recognising the role has been implemented in different timeframes in different areas, feedback from the qualitative consultation and case studies suggests:
1. The value of the coordinator role extends beyond what the postholder directly delivers. Through establishing networks and building relationships, coordinators build a local ‘system’ which raises the capability of each Local Authority and its partners to deliver positive outcomes for parents of low-income families. This is most visible in the perceived impact of this work in developing broader, more effective referral pathways where a wider range of stakeholders are able to signpost potential service users to the support they need.
2. Coordination appears most effective when it is resourced by a dedicated post-holder providing additional capacity, as opposed to being absorbed into the duties of existing local authority colleagues. Where it is treated as an ‘add-on’ to other duties there is a risk of deprioritisation – the ring-fenced capacity and funding associated with the Coordinator role ensures that this is avoided.
3. The Coordinator role is particularly well-suited to breaking down ‘siloed’ ways of working within local authorities. Where two teams share a target group in this way (in this case, parents of low-income families looking to move into sustainable, well-paying work) with a remit that spans both, a dedicated Coordination role appears to be a suitable means of building collaboration. To a large extent, the true value of the role lies in the connections it helps to build in this way.
4. The effectiveness of the Coordinator role is linked to the extent to which the postholder is able to develop knowledge and relationships in the area over time. The combination of analytical work (mapping, collection and analysis of data) with wide stakeholder engagement explains the success of Coordinators in generating a ‘system level’ perspective on parental employability in their local areas, which is difficult to replicate from within a single organisation or team. This enables postholders to identify gaps and duplications and act on them credibly.
5. Post holders cannot maximise their ability to establish and strengthen partnerships without long-term certainty. Where potential partners know the role may not exist or be able to provide funding in the medium term, this undermines their confidence in engaging with the coordinator. Longer-term funding and permanent status for Coordinators may help to strengthen the capacity of the role in this respect. It should also be expected that Coordinators need time – and continued organisational support – to build a knowledge base that can be used to inform improvements to service provision.