The three tools created as a result of this project aim and to improve the quality and depth of the information captured by Leapfrog Target Control, a tool that uses concentric circles to arrange topics and issues in order of importance, from most important in the centre to least in the outermost circle..
In workshops delivered by Public Health at Blackburn with Darwen and Healthwatch, we observed a number of challenges to collecting data ready for analysis and reporting. We took each of these and developed three new tools as variations on Target Control in response: Sorting Out Target Control, Personally Important and Facilitator’s sheet.
Sorting Out Target Control involves the people you are engaging in analysis by prompting further conversation, summary and validation of responses made through Target Control. This is done by visualising the comments made for one circle of importance at a time. Personally Important allows individuals to privately record issues which they would prefer to record in confidence, fold in half to hand to the facilitator. Facilitator’s Sheet prompts facilitators to record notes on stories, observations, useful quotes and anything that stands out while a group completes Target Control together. In addition to this, we used a sheet of tracing paper over Target Control for a layer of notes about decisions made when placing issues onto the tool.
The new tools were tested over 50 times in Public Health and Healthwatch workshops with different people, including children on hospital wards. The feedback from Ben Pearson at Healthwatch was very positive.
Ben said the broader range of tools were “fully inclusive” because they enabled people of different ages and abilities in different settings to share their views and experiences. They were also easy to use for both skilled and non-skilled facilitators who felt more confident to deliver an activity with the tools. In one case, volunteers used the tools without Ben present.
Ben said that the Facilitator’s Note Sheet captured more information that they would otherwise miss to back up the findings from the tool. They hadn’t previously considered this as a way of developing insight into data..
“[Without Leapfrog], it would have been more difficult to gather the information and get participants interested and motivated to share their views and experiences. Using the tools and working with Leapfrog creates a structure where things can be easily measured…We’re able to build a stronger narrative and have more specific and truthful findings because we can involve people further into the process.” (Ben Pearson)
He felt the organisation had benefitted from these tools, remarking that they opened new opportunities to be reflective and involve people in data analysis as well as collection. They will be continuing to do this in on-going practice. , Healthwatch will continue to incorporate the tools into forth-coming projects and will publish a report with Healthtalk at Public Health in Blackburn in July 2017.
Laura Wareing