SCIE media releases 2004

Realistic or tokenistic: Is service user involvement really making a difference?

10 March 2004

A new report from the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) reveals that despite efforts being made across the UK to involve service users in service planning and development, few organisations can demonstrate whether their involvement has actually made a difference.

SCIE position paper 3: Has service user participation made a difference to social care services? by Sarah Carr concludes that across the social care and health sectors, service user participation is driven by process rather than outcomes; organisations want to be doing the right thing, but there is very little evidence that when it comes to putting the views of service users into practice, this actually takes place.

Chair of SCIE, Jane Campbell, said, "There can be a difference between what managers want from service user participation and what service users want. Many organisations see service users as people to consult rather than as partners, asking their opinion about the services they receive rather than involving them in making decisions at a strategic level.

"Organisations need to be clear from the beginning about the aims and scope of service user participation and ensure that there is an organisational commitment to respond to things service users suggest.";

The report brings together research on the impact of the involvement of older people, children and young people, people with learning disabilities, people with learning difficulties, disabled people and mental health service users.

It concludes that little or no attention has been paid to monitoring or evaluating the effects of service user participation on service change and that very little feedback is given to service users about the impact of their participation.

"The possible outcome of failing to respond to the views and expertise of service users, or to feed back about the impact of the participation, is that service users will become cynical and disengaged,"; Campbell said.

"It's extremely important that we recognise that beyond their rights as users of social services, they have rights as citizens to whom services are accountable.";

The report highlights areas for improvement and provides a number of practical factors for organisations to consider when implementing service users participation.

The report will form the basis for SCIE practice guides due out later this year which will look at how organisations, systems and practice need to change in order to respond to participation.

If you would like a copy of the report or you would like to join the SCIE mailing list to hear about other upcoming publications and events, please phone 020 7089 6840 or email publications@scie.org.uk for your free copy. The report is also available in the Publications section of SCIE's website.

Media contact

Margaret Lynch | Press Officer | T: 020 7089 6858 | M: 07834 194 896

Notes to editors

The report is being launched at the first meeting of the SCIE Partners' Council on 10 March, which will steer SCIE's Board on its priorities, programmes and performance. The Partners' Council will have up to 45 members nominated by service user organisations, carers and stakeholders and will represent the four UK countries. At least one third of the members will come from service user and carer organisations.

To receive a copy of SCIE position paper 3: Has service user participation made a difference to social care services? by Sarah Carr please contact Margaret Lynch, Press Officer on 020 7089 6858. A plain English summary is also available.

The Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) gathers and publicises knowledge about how to make social care services better. SCIE is an independent organisation and a registered charity and was created in response to the government drive to improve quality in social care services in England and Wales. SCIE produces knowledge reviews, resource guides, practice guides and position papers on key social care issues. It also administers an electronic library for social care called eLSC, which contains extensive social care knowledge and can be accessed online at www.elsc.org.uk. All SCIE products are available free from the from the Publications section of this website, by emailing publications@scie.org.uk, or by phoning 020 7089 6840.