Disseminating Findings
Community Evaluation Unit
Taunton Deane PCT
Sure Start Weston super Mare
Mystery Shopping
for Quality Services
Sure Start Weston Super Mare
Service Quality Review 2004
Aims:
• To assess children’s services in terms of how they fit to
Sure Start’s aims + the expectations of local families
• To consider the experience of local parents in seeking
advice and information
• To use the results to inform the development of
services in the local area
Key Questions:
• How do parents define a quality service?
• What is the quality of services/activities
provided by both Sure Start + local providers?
• How easy is it for families to access services in
their area?
• What are the barriers that families may face
when accessing services?
Defining Quality: Parent Consultation
• Six parents involved in discussing factors that
are important for them
• Factors that make a high quality + family
friendly service:
–
–
–
–
–
Staff attitude
Confidentiality
Signposting
Information
Costs
- Easy access
- Privacy
- Cleanliness
- Leaflets
- Activities
The Method: Mystery Shoppers
• Mystery shoppers recruited via GP
records
• Postcard adverts sent to 298 households
• 17 people telephoned to register interest
• Design of mystery shopping scenarios
• Consent taken from service providers to
mystery shop them
• 7 telephone and 10 visit based enquiries
were carried out
• Enquiries made at a number of services
which work either directly with, or include
access for, under 4’s and their families in
Weston super Mare
Type of Enquiry
Location
Enquiring about…
Phone
Nursery
Information on their service
Phone
Nursery
Information on their service
Phone
Sure Start
Information on their services and Speech
and Language services
Phone
Sure Start
Information on parent involvement
Phone
Children’s Information Service
Information on general children’s services
Phone
Children’s Information Service
Information on general children’s services and childcare
Phone
Library
Information on their services and Speech and Language
services
Visit
Sure Start
Information on their services and services for children
over 4 years
Visit
Sure Start
Information on craft session and general services
for children
Visit
Sure Start
Visit to group and information on general services
for children
Visit
Sure Start
Visit to parents meeting
Visit
Various
Information on depression support
Visit
Children’s Information Service
Information on childcare and outdoor play
Visit
Children’s Information Service
Information on childcare and Speech and Language
services
Visit
Health Centre
Information on smoking cessation
Visit
Library
Information on their services and Speech and Language
services
Visit
Library
Information on their services and Speech and Language
services
Health Centre Mystery Shopper Visit
The Enquiry – Find out about giving up smoking
Where did you go to find out about giving up smoking?
Getting There
How did you get to the health centre?
How long did it take you?
What was your journey like?
Was there buggy access to the building?
Was it clear where you were going?
Initial Impressions
Did anyone greet you?
Did the staff welcome you and your children?
How approachable were the staff?
Did you have to wait to talk to someone at all?
Information Given
What information were you given?
Do you feel that this would be helpful to someone considering giving up smoking?
Were you able to take any leaflets away with you?
Did you feel encouraged to find out more about giving up?
General
Do you have any more comments on your experience?
Could anything be done to have made it easier for you?
Health Centre Mystery Shopper Telephone Call
You are having problems breast feeding – can they help or
suggest where you can go?
How long did it take to get through?
Was the person you spoke to able to help?
What information were you given?
How friendly and helpful were they?
Could anything have been done differently?
Would you feel able to follow up your enquiry with the information given?
Results1: What is the quality of services?
• Varied experiences – enquirer has as much
influence as the provider
• Influenced heavily by gatekeepers
• Information on sensitive issues difficult to
locate
• Difference between phone and visit enquiries
Results2: Phone Enquiries
• Front line staff ‘helpful’ but little information
• Positive key words: helpful, friendly, reassuring, encouraging,
interested, supportive
• Negative key words: staff are too busy, rushed, indifferent, no
encouragement, impersonal service, unapproachable
• Signposting confusing
• Little relevant information available
• Order of information – funded geographical areas
Results3: Visit Enquiries
• No problems with travel to venues
• 6 mystery shoppers took children – very few
facilities/child friendly areas
• Access to buildings good but few signs
• Divide over front line staff:
– 4 x pleased by friendliness
– 5 x unsatisfactory
• Very large, busy, dull looking unfriendly places
• Very few child friendly venues - distraction
• Little privacy or confidentiality – public spaces
• Signposting confusing
Results4: Key barriers
• Lack of encouragement/friendliness
• Staff attitude + welcome
• Local knowledge – partial information
• Misinformation + confusing signposts
• Child friendliness – distractions + attention
Conclusions:
• Parents often feel nervous about reaching out to a new service
either by phone or in person
• Parents look for different qualities when they are phoning about a
service compared to when they visit
• Front line staff are key gatekeepers + are very important in
providing quality family based services + information
• Those shoppers who are welcomed + encouraged feel more at
ease with the service + asking questions
• Few venues prioritise privacy/confidentiality when sharing
personal details
• Few venues that give information about children’s services are
child-friendly
• Information + signposting can be confusing
Recommendations:
• Expect any parent who comes to the service to be nervous and
require some support
• Provide key information to front line staff; activities, specific staff
contacts etc.
• Ensure staff are aware that they are gatekeepers to important
information + appreciate the power that gives
• Train front line staff in how to welcome and encourage
participation from the earliest stages
• Encourage a private space for parents to discuss issues
confidentially
• Expect people accessing children’s services to have children
with them
• Ensure only correct information + signposting is given, giving
consideration to literacy issues
Learning
•
•
•
•
•
Successful Methodology - uncovered what it can be like for local
parents attempting to access services and information – data
impossible to gather in other ways
Good Action Research - Successfully engaging ‘hard to reach’ parent
both in the research and service – one man quit smoking as a result
and sample draws on non Sure Start parents
An incentive must be used (previous research 0 replies from 250) some volunteers are more interested in the incentive than the
evaluation
Dealing with data – project not about naming and shaming but
developing a model of good practice with reference to children’s
services – dealing sensitively with services
Difference in feedback from parents – first MS exercise less
structured feedback sheet to standardise data. Qualitative or
quantitative?
Dissemination
• Presentation to Parent Forum
• Presentation to Partnership Board
• Full report
• Summary for Weston super Mare library
Contact Details
Jo Moseley
Community Evaluation Unit
Taunton Deane PCT
Wellsprings Road
Taunton
TA2 7PQ
[email protected] or
[email protected]
01823 344305
Reports: www.somerset.nhs.uk/communityevaluation