Every year we ask the people we support about the service they receive at St Martins. It takes the form of an anonymous survey and it gives us valuable feedback about what we are doing well and how we can support people better.
The table below shows how people rate our services where green is excellent, yellow is good, blue is poor and red is very poor.
We have the data from the previous two years so can compare and look for trends.
How can we improve?
This is one of the questions we ask! Survey respondents were given multiple options about what would help to improve St Martins services and they can add their own.
- More time with keyworker
- Wider range of services available
- More information on services available
- Access to services at different times
- Additional locations for services
- Gender specific services
A large number of people want more time with their keyworker and there were additional comments about wanting more team members working in St Martins services. In response to this we are reviewing our model of support so that we can provide people with more time and continuity in the support they receive. This comes at a time when services are being cut, so it is a challenge but one we want to respond to.
Some people mentioned things that are not in our control, such as wanting to work – this is a frustrating issue that needs to be addressed at government level – people in receipt of enhanced housing benefit (which pays for their accommodation and support at St Martins) would lose this benefit and therefore their eligibility to live in St Martins accommodation if they work. However, they cannot afford private rental until they get a job.
We know from the survey that 27% of people say that mental health issues are the biggest reason why they needed to access St Martins services in the first place, followed by substance misuse (24%), lack of affordable housing (11%) and relationship breakdown (11%). We ask questions about how their levels of confidence and wellbeing have changed since they have been supported by St Martins. 87% of people said they feel more confident since accessing St Martins services and 90% of people said they feel more in control of their lives.
93% of people responded said they feel understood by St Martins team members, which is encouraging because person-centred support is so important.
72% say they accessed more activities since they were supported by St Martins, yet this is an area people say they want more of. 26% of people do not feel physically healthy so this is an area that we aim to address. We have built a connection with Nuffield gym and are also looking at supporting people to access Go 4 Less discounts at council-run sports facilities.
93% of people say their overall quality of life has improved and 83% feel hopeful about the future.
In the previous consultation, it was recommended to lobby for more ‘affordable’ housing. However, what is needed is ‘social’ housing as affordable housing, such as shared ownership schemes, are not affordable at all. We will continue to work with organisations such as Homeless Link and Norwich City Council to improve understanding and increase access to social housing in the area, alongside continuing to assess our own stock of accommodation and services to improve the availability of, and access into, social housing.
Our aim is to have a long-term impact that improves the lives, hopes and prospects of the people accessing our services.