Results of Localoffer Survey(March April2015)

Results of LocalOffer Survey(March–April2015)

Introduction

InMarch2015weconducted a LocalOffersurveywith thefollowing aims:

Findinganyservicesthatarenotincludedthatshouldbe
MakingiteasiertofindservicesbyunderstandinghowpeoplesearchtheLocalOffer
Helpunderstandhow we couldmaketheLocalOffermoreattractivetouse
Guidewhatelsewe couldincludetomaketheLocalOffermoreuseful
FindpeoplewhowouldbeinterestedinworkingonthefuturedevelopmentoftheLocalOffer
GainfeedbackonwhereweshouldpublicisetheLocalOffertoraiseawarenessofwhatservicesareoutthere

Thesurveywas publicisedusinganumberofmethodsincludingapressrelease,theParentParticipationwebsite,SEND Reformsnewsletter,team meetings,Facebook,Twitter andemail.Thestatistical results ofthesurveyare listed below,followed bycommentsfromtheparticipantsandresponsesfromtheteamresponsibleformaintainingandupdatingtheLocal Offer.

MainMessages

The clearoverridingpoint(reflected inthe lowresponserate)is thatnotenoughpeopleknowabout theTorbayLocal Offer–we need toaddressthisurgently
TheLocalOffer is well laid outandfairlystraightforward
Need tofocusonWork/ Preparingfor Adulthoodsection

On thefollowingpages:

Statistical resultsofthesurvey
Commentsreceivedwitharesponsefrom theLocalOffer team.

This surveywill formpartof anongoing policyofgatheringandusingfeedbackwhich alsoincludesuser groupsandtheonlinecontactform.

If youwouldlike to queryor followup anyaspectofthesurveyplease .

Parents / Professionals
Numberofresponses / 5 / 32
Young People / Parents / Professionals
No / Yes / No / Yes
Haveyou visited theLocalOfferwebsite? / 2 / 3 / 3 / 34
Canyoufind theSENDservices that youuse ontheLocalOfferwebsite? / 0 / 5 / 5 / 32
Wasiteasytofindtheservicesyouwere lookingfor? / 2 / 2 / 3 / 29
Is theinformationonyourserviceup todate / n/a / n/a / 2 / 31
TheLocalOffershouldbeeasyto understandandjargonfree.Do you thinktheTorbayLocal Offer websiteachieves this aim? / 0 / 5 / 1 / 30
Do you think weneedtoimprove the waytheTorbayLocal Offerwebsite looks? / 4 / 1 / 30 / 5

Young People /Parents comments inblack–Professionals comments in green

Comments /Response
1 / Ifound itdifficultwhenusing keywords. I wouldn'thaveknown to havelookedinthe 1stdropdownboxunderlocal offerthenSEN etc. It was onlyafterclickingthroughthis surveyIwasawareofthatheading.Perhapslocaloffer couldbeafterSEN/disabilitiesheadingand/orcomeup whenSEN is checked in keywords. It tooka littleplaying about with. / Weneedtoneedto maketheLocalOfferasaccessibleaspossibleandfeel that itwould be onefurtherclick awaybyputtingit withintheSEN sectionofthedirectory.
Thekeywords are more useful whenyou knowthe specific nameoftheserviceyou aresearchingfor (e.g.Phab Club), whereasthe categoryoptions are more usefulwhenyou are looking forguidanceaboutwhatservices and supportareavailable(e.g.
ShortBreaks).Wehaveimprovedthelabellingon thekeyword
search boxes todifferentiate betweenLocalOffersearchandwholedirectorysearch.
Werecognisethatthere is more work to bedonetoimprovesearchfunctions(e.g.tomakesuretherightkeywords are linkedtotherightservices) so pleasecontinuetoadvise us wheneveryou find anexample:
2 / Is theinformationonyourservice up todate? / Wewereadvised by2services that theinformationthatweholdis notup todate.Wehavecontactedbothservices togain uptodate informationandwill make theamendments as soon as itisreceived.
Please rememberthatifyouhave arecord intheLocalOffer (oranywherewithin theTorbayDirectory)we need youto letusknowifyourservicechanges.
3 / Wedon’thave a specificwebpage / Remember,youcanputwhateverinformationyouwouldlike onyour Local Offerrecord.
4 / Would like theretobea linkfromourService tothespecialist resourceprovisionsforhearingimpairedpupilsatWestlandsandSt.Margaret's / Wehaveaddedtheselinks totheHearingImpairmentServicerecord ontheLocalOffer.
5 / Sorrybut can'tfinda directlink to childminders / Childminders canbefoundbyeither selectingEducation andthenSearch for Childcare in Torbayand thenChildminderswhichbrings up all childminderswhohavetheirdetails within theTorbayDirectory. Or, bytyping‘childminder’(or thenameof aspecificchildminder)in the keywordsearchbox.
Work?
Rememberingayoungpersonwith SEN mightwant togointo paidworkinsteadofcollege(sonwasshutting off inclass basedsessions).NeedtoofferDP/Supportworkers? Need topromote SENpeopletoEmployers -whowill do this whenPlussfinish. / Totallyagree thatpreparingayoungpersonfor employment ismajorpiece ofworkthatmustbe addressed bythe SENDreforms.With regardtotheLocal Offer, the Preparing ForAdulthoodsection oftheLocalOfferbringstogetherinformationon organisationsandgroupswhooffersupport inthefollowingareas:-
Whowillguidepeoplewhen theyare in 'SupportedEmployment'-needtobe reviewedannuallyeven nowson is inpaid work- will this beTorbayCouncilsresponsibilityas theyarefunding support?
Talkingtoparents there are somecommunicationissueswith Project Search. Iam encouraging parents togivethem feedback.
Cannotleavecompanies toarrange'paid'work needstobemuchmore personallydriven-FamilyLed Jobs. / Training EmploymentIndependentLivingCommunityInvolvementHealth
If you areawareoforganisations / individualswho can offersupport in this areathat are notincludedalready, pleaseemailwith the details
Supported Employmentquery
It woulddependonwhoandhowthe supporter is paid.Ifthebudget is comingfromsocial careas aDirectPaymentthentheTrust wouldreviewtheDirectPaymentonanannualbasis or ifthere was anysignificantchange. NowthattheAdultZonesareco-ordinatingthehealthand social carefunctionfor peoplewitha learning disability, the Zoneteamwould beresponsiblefor theannualreview. Iftheservice is fundedthroughSupportingPeople or anotherpartoftheCouncil thentheywould beresponsiblefor reviewingthe contract.
Careers SouthWest offersupportfor youngpeopleuptotheir19thbirthday.Wearecurrentlyin discussionregardingwhatlevel ofsupport is offeredfor youngpeoplewithanEHCPafteryear 11.
The SEND OperationalLeadsgroupwill continuetoplantosupportyoungpeoplewho are moving into adulthood.Currentlyworkis takingplacetomapthepathwaybetween Children’sandAdults’ Services tocreate a guide for youngpeopleandtheirfamilies.Ouraim is tomakethisavailablefromSeptember.
I thinkmore local informationfor disabled/SEN.Parkinglocally(whetheryouhave to pay) possiblyalink tothe / Wehave nowaddedalink to RADAR keyschemeonmaincouncilsite.Theschemehasbeensetup toallowaccess to
permit sectiononTorbaycouncil website.Local town access (wherepossible).
Informationandmaponthechanging places locallye.g.the librarywithadvice that yourown slingfor theirhoist isrequired or Parkfield(Ialso thinkthere is alooin hyderoad somewherethatisadapted),informationon thewhereaboutsofRADAR keytoilets.This helpspeopleplantheiroutings alittleeasierandknow what totakewith themcausing lessstressfor the carerandyoungperson / around9,000lockeddisabled toiletsin Torbayand across thecounty,thatcanbeopened bya‘RADAR Key’ and aimstoreducedisabledtoiletsbeingshutduetovandalismandmisuse.
Wehavealsoadded arecordfor Disabled Parkingin Torbaywhichgives details of howto accessparkingpermits/ bluebadges inthebay.
TheDisabilityInformationService hasa recordin theLocalOffer(see below):
The DisabilityInformationService
Provides awiderangeof freeinformationandadvice to peoplein Torbay(TQ1-TQ5)affectedbyanyformof disabilityor long-termhealthcondition,as well as to informalcarersandprofessionals. Social securityadvice, learningandwork options,charitysearches,housingoptions,etc
Make itmoreobvioususing symbolsfor thetextsizing,fontetc Iclickedon thewords but theywere quite small.Avisuallyimpairedpersonmaynotnoticethemthatsmallat thetopofthescreento knowto click onthemto makeit accessible. / Wewillfeed this backtothewebprovider to seeif anychangescan bemadetotheaccessibilityoptions
Inthemeantime,ifyou are having troubleaccessing the siteforspecificinformationplease call theFISteamon08003285974whowill be happyto help.
Thegreenboxthatsays 'local offer' couldbeclickable? / Werecognise this isaproblemandagree it wouldbe a benefitifit was clickable.Thesymbol is theretoshowthat withintherecord there is adownloadableLocalOffertemplate,howeversomepeoplehavetakenthis tobea ‘button’which should takeyou totheLocalOfferdocument.At themomentwe can’tmakethis happen,howeverwewillprovidethefeedbacktotheprovider to see ifanything can bedone.
Somenicergraphicsviews oftheBaypositivemessagesetc / Wewoulddefinitelylike todothis.Atthemoment it isn’tpossibletodirectlyinclude wallpaper /bannerphotos, videosetc
Have more video clips/photosandless textgenerally / butthis is a longer termaspirationifwe are to meetthewishesexpressed byusers.
Wecaninclude linkstovideos onother sites,e.g providersownwebsites, or Youtube(forexample).Checkoutthe linkon themainLocalOfferpagetoyoungpeople’svideos onthe SENDreforms.
What doyou like about the currentTorbayLocal Offersite
Parents/ Young people

Clear anduserfriendly.
Lovehaving everythingin oneplace-though alotofwork to keepupdating
It’s cleanandeasyon theeyeandeasyto read.
Lotsofinformation,whenyouhavemanagedtotweak search toknowwhat tolookfor. Differentcolours helpdifferentiatetheheadings. Linkswithemailsandwebsitesandeachitem/groupseparated.

Professionals

Clear anduserfriendly.
Clearlylaid out, gooddifferentiationofsections,goodcolours.
Nice andclear
It's opentouserviews
Easyto navigate, lotsofinformation.
Gives allthe key information inoneplace.
Easeofuse

/ Thankyou –wewillcontinue tocheckuser satisfaction so thatwe know what is workingand whatneedsimproving

Easyto locateandread.
bright and colourful,easyto navigate
Clear sectionsaddressing the eacharea oftheSEND Reforms
Looksfine,standsoutbutnottoopowering
Not sureonlylookedbrieflycurrently.
It’s a good start
AllLO pages areon the same template
Easyto navigate,informationclearlyworded
Easyto useandunderstand
Clearlinks Not too'wordy'

What don'tyou like aboutthe currentTorbayLocalOfferwebsite?

Multiplelistingsofproviders-for exampleChanging Places intheHealthsection,RobinsandSharedLives in theShort Breaks sectionappearseveral times inthelist ofproviders

/ Wehaveremovedtheduplicatedrecords.Pleasecontinuetoadvise ifyouspotanyduplicationsbycontacting

No links or informationonfundingfor SpecialNeeds topromote andencourageextracurricularactivities. Especiallywhere anindividual is startingtomake steadyprogress in specificsportsandreachingastagewherefurther training will enablethemtocompeteincompetitionsonamoreequalfooting.
a sister websitefromSouth DevonSchoolofGymnastics is being developedundertheheadingofSouth DevonSpecialOlympics

/ Thankswehavemadeanote ofyourcommentsrequestinginformationonSpeechandlanguage,wheelchairfootballandspecial Olympicsgymnasticsandswimming (specialisedcoaches in bothfields).
WehaveaddedalinktotheSouth DevonSchoolofGymnastics
–thanks.
Tohelpusmake surethatwehavetherightindividuals /organisations,pleaselet us knowthedetailsofspecific clubs/coachesthatshouldbeincludedbyemailing

That it comesup asthethirdhit ongoogle. Ifyoutype'TorbayCouncil LocalOffer' into google thefirst hitis ageneric Torbay council websitepagewhich I do notthink isnearlyas helpful astheTorbaydirectory website. Ifbeing used bysomeonewho didnotknowabouttheTorbaydirectoryI donotthinkit is immediatelyobviouswhere the directoryand localoffersare.I knewwhere to lookfor ourservice one because I havelookedatthedirectorybefore.

/ Our idealwouldbetocometoponGooglehoweverunfortunately that isnotstraightforward. Inanutshell, sitesthatcontain“gov”in theirURL: searchtermswiththeexceptionofsomemajor sites.Thiswould be down to hit rate andthefactthe.govsites have ahigherpage rankongoogle
Thetoptwo recordstakeyoutothecouncil SENDReforms/LocalOfferinformationpage sowehave putalinktotheLocalOfferon thesepagesas thenextbestsolution.
Thereforeour challenge is to raiseawarenessofthe directLocalOffer link

Green...looksverymedical

/ Colours areobviouslydown to personaltaste–howeverwehavedecidedto stickwiththecoloursofthewider TorbayDirectorytokeep withthefamiliar brand.
As previouslymentionedourlongertermaspiration is tobeabletohavebackground photos /wallpaper

Do peopleknowaboutit?

/ Definitelynot enough.Our nextpriorityis to publicisetheLocalOffer andas afirststep aleafletis being producedforcirculation.At team meetingsProfessionalsare beingencouragedto talkto parentsabouttheLocalOffer andwe areusingfurtheroptions such asthe FIS twitter and Facebookfeeds.

Not sure it isthateasyfor parents/carers to findthesectiononthewebsitetheymightbelookingfor.
Localoffer: -Special..... is notanobviousplace tolook

/ This is veryindividual, sotohelpus improvethesearchfunctionwe need specificexamplesofwherepeople have hadproblemsfindingaservice so thatwe canfixit.
If wehaveenoughfeedbackthatsearchfunctions arenotworkingeffectively then wewill changethem–we needthistowork for people.

I was unabletoopenanylocal offersfrom

/ Theindividualschools’LocalOffersare all therewithin the
individual schools- eitherfromtheTorbaysiteor ifIwent into theschoolandthen clickedonLocalOffer. / records andaredownloadable(sincesummer 14).It is possiblethat youare trying to click on thegreen‘Local Offer’badgewhichis notahyperlink. Please click ontheindividualschoolrecordtoopen it andyouwill findthedownloadableLocal Offertemplatewithin.

Website links

/ Weneedwebsite linkstoensureweincludealloftheinformationthat we must includeaccordingtothestatutoryguidance in the SENDCodeof Practice, chapter 4. This is theapproachthatourpeers havetakenacross the region.

Toomuchtext

/ All services can choose toputas littleor asmuchinformationasdesired intheirrecords.Services can chooseto simplyput alinktotheirownwebsite,however ifit is a statutoryservice (socialcare, health,education)a certainamountofinformationmustbepublishedonlineas outlined bytheLocalOfferregulations.
Tohelpthestatutoryservices meettheseobligations,Local Offertemplateswerecreated,whichonce completed,should ensurethateachservice hascomplied. However,services couldchoosenottocomplete atemplateand have theoptionofpublishingall of this informationon theirownwebsitesinstead.
Thetemplateapproachwas decided inpartnershipwithmulti-agencyprofessionals andrepresentativesoftheParentParticipationForum.
Inthefuture we maybeable toreplace someofthetextwithsymbolsandphotographs;howeverwe are notthereatthemoment.
Weareaiming to workwithyoungpeople’sgroupstoguide thefuture contentandpresentationoftheLocalOffer soit is quitepossibletheformatwillchange inthe longterm.