Listening, learning, leading - consultation and participation standards to be included in all service level agreements with provider organisations
Contact officer: Colette O'Brien, commissioner, Children's Services
Tel: 0151 233 2864
Email: Colette.O'Brien@liverpool.gov.uk
Start date: 29 June 2007
End date: 2 January 2008
Purpose of the exercise:
This exercise will embed consultation with service users and carers, by ensuring such work is a condition of the service level agreement
Who was consulted and how:
Service users and carers were consulted via such methods as focus groups and surveys
Who will the results of the exercise be reported to:
The results will be reported to service commissioners as an integral part of contract monitoring
What were the findings of the exercise:
A sample of voluntary service organisations who are commissioned by Children's Services were invited to join focus groups as part of the joint area review (JAR) inspection. The theme of these groups was participation with service users. The inspectors at the focus group said that it was evident that the practice encouraged by the service level agreements ensured that there was good consultation between the voluntary organisations and their service users. They also were shown examples of how these consultation exercises resulted in influencing service design.
What were the changes to the service brought about as a result of the consultation:
The feedback from the voluntary sector service providers has helped shape the participation strategy for children's social care![(MS Word [68Kb] opens in new window)](/images/Word.gif)
. The document was showcased at an event organised by the Communication and Engagement group entitled 'Participation in action' on 10 March 2008.