Author: Donna

Triangle announces Frontline Manager of the Year at ERSA Employability Awards 2020

Posted on by Donna

Triangle has sponsored the Frontline Manager of the Year award at The Employment Related Services Association (ERSA) Employability Awards 2020. Triangle will announce the winner of this category on 22nd July via an online video conference.

ERSA logo on a balloon background

ERSA, the membership body for the employment support sector, hosts the Employability Awards, honouring the achievements of those working to support jobseekers in their progression in to work.

 Triangle, the social enterprise behind the Outcomes Star, supports frontline workers across employment programmes and services, including skills provision, self-employment, and youth employment services.

The Employment Awards are now in their eight year and ERSA has added four new award categories for 2020 to better reflect the diversity of the sector. Triangle has sponsored The Frontline Manager of the Year – a new award category that recognises a frontline manager or team leader who has demonstrated exceptional commitment to leading their frontline team to excellent performance and customer achievements.

Graham Randles, MD of Triangle, said:

“Triangle is proud to sponsor this award given the importance and need to provide exceptional frontline support to jobseekers in their progression into work. The individuals in this category have shown an outstanding commitment and should be applauded for their vital work within their organisations and the sector at large.”

 The shortlisted nominees for all categories were announced last month on UK Employability Day, which saw many organisations, including Triangle, unite across the country to show how they’re supporting people into work.

The finalists for Frontline Manager of the Year include:

Graham RandlesGraham added:

 “The team and I are excited for ERSA’s upcoming Employment Awards ceremony and revealing who has won Frontline Manager of The Year 2020. Best of luck to all the nominees shortlisted for the Awards!”

 Award winners will be announced as part of a virtual celebration on Wednesday 22nd July 2020, 17:00 – 19:00 UK BST. Further details about the ERSA Employability Awards can be found on the ERSA website.

 

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For more information please email info@outcomesstar.org. Each Outcomes Star is carefully designed to support the organisations, frontline and keyworkers as well as remain accessible and user friendly for the service users that they support. Triangle have developed specific Outcomes Stars for use within the employment sector, including the Work Star and Pathway Star. Discover which Star is right for your sector.

The Employment Related Services Association (ERSA) is the representative body for the employment support sector. ERSA’s membership spans the private, voluntary, and public sectors and ranges from large multi-nationals through to small specialist charities.

Webinar: The Outcomes Star as a key work and evaluation tool in the employment sector

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On Wednesday 8th July Triangle will be hosting an ERSA Webinar. This webinar is an introduction to the Outcomes Stars used in the Employability sector. The webinar will consist of an introduction to the Work Star and Pathway Star followed by a Q&A.

Reserve your place now

This webinar is a part of the ERSA Building Partnerships 2.0 summer webinar series.

The Outcomes Stars are evidence-based tools for measuring and supporting change when working with people. They are a great way for frontline services to demonstrate their impact whilst improving their keywork. The Work Star and the Pathway Star are both tailored specifically to the employment sector.

The Outcomes Stars are evidence-based tools for measuring and supporting change when working with people.

The Work Star has been designed for use with adults out of work or returning to the workplace. It provides a holistic framework for services to use when supporting service users, as well as a simple way of measuring progress to work.

The 3rd Edition of the Work Star was published in 2017 with input from the Department of Work and Pensions (Essex Social Justice Team), Prospects, Hounslow Council and The LightBulb.

The Pathway Star is the Outcomes Star for people overcoming barriers to work and is designed for use with people who need considerable support if they are to move towards work. This includes people currently facing significant barriers to work, such as health or housing problems, substance misuse, crime, domestic abuse, family culture (including generations of people not in work) or household finances.

The Pathway Star was developed by Triangle with service providers and commissioners from Liverpool City Region Combined Authority.

On behalf of everyone here at Triangle we look forward to seeing you at the Webinar and would like to extend a big thanks to ERSA and finally please sign up for our newsletter if you haven’t already.

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Each Outcomes Star is carefully created in collaboration with sector organisations, for more information on which Stars are suitable for your sector please contact us or take a look at Find your Star. If you have any questions on which Star to use, or if you would like any information on the new Star Online, or anything else, please contact us on info@outcomesstar.org or +44 (0) 207 272 8765.

Covid-19 update July

Posted on by Donna

Please note that we have recently been working at reduced staff levels and there may be some delay in getting back to you.

Online training and remote use of the Star

Like so many, we have adapted fast to the impact of Covid-19. We’re all working from home but still open and active, the Star Online is running and we are responding by phone, email, and video meetings, so in some ways it is business as per usual. In other ways, everything has changed.

We support service providers across health and social care to use the Star. Many are working with the most vulnerable people. We are hearing how they are finding ways to respond and to support their service users and learning more about how we can help.

Do contact us by phone tel: 020 7272 8765 email info@outcomesstar.org or get in touch with your main Triangle contact. The Outcomes Star can be used well by phone or video link we provide Outcomes Star training remotely, by video link to those working from home, and continue to support implementation of the Star.

Please sign up for our newsletter if you haven’t already, to receive timely updates.

As the situation and government advice changes, we are monitoring the situation closely and will update our response accordingly.

Free client webinars: Introduction to the Star Online reports dashboard

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Are you an existing Outcomes Star and Star Online client? Triangle has added several more dates for their free, live webinar Introduction to the Star Online Reports Dashboard via Zoom through July.

Two Star experts will host a live workshop and introduction to the new Star Online reports dashboard for existing clients, who are currently using the Star or who would like an introduction to the new Star Online system. Clients have been emailed details of dates, with information on how to book.

What will this webinar cover?

This webinar will explore the Star Online reports dashboard. It will cover:

  • the three new report dashboards for implementation, snapshot and distance travelled reporting
  • how to use the filters
  • how to think about engagements to create instant and engaging charts that can be downloaded to add to any report or funding bid.

The webinar will also discuss what the reports can tell you about how Stars are being used in a service and the progress made by service users.

Each webinar will consist of a short video presentation, which will be followed by a question and answer season and it is designed to support clients by sharing knowledge, ideas and information.

Please note: We have limited spaces available and we expect them to fill up quickly!

Who will benefit from this webinars?

This webinar is ideal for Managers as well as anyone responsible for producing reports on Outcomes Star data. Clients may have recently started using, or be about to start using, the new Star Online system.

How much do these webinars cost and what do I need?

The webinars are all free. To attend, clients will just need to book your place via the email invitations and log on to zoom.

How can I reserve my place?

As an existing client, you will have been sent an email with the dates and information, just RSVP to the dates you can make. If you find you cannot attend a webinar, please cancel your reservation to allow others to make use of the place.

What are the dates and times?

  • Wednesday 8th July 10am
  • Monday 13th July 10am
  • Wednesday 22nd July 10am

We will be announcing more details on upcoming dates into August and beyond, please keep an eye out for the emails with dates and times.

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If you have any questions on which Star to use, or if you would like any information on the new Star Online, or anything else, please contact us on info@outcomesstar.org or +44 (0) 207 272 8765.

Free client webinars: How to use the Star remotely

Posted on by Donna
Triangle will be hosting another webinar for existing clients, on Tuesday 21st July at 10am, exploring how to use the Star remotely, either via phone, video or online.

What will the webinar cover and who will benefit from attending?

Following on from our guidance on How to complete the Star remotely this webinar will be of interest to any practitioners, who due to the current social distancing measures, are completing or thinking of completing Stars with service users via phone or online platforms. We will share our top tips on making this work.

This webinar will be approximately 45 minutes long, and will feature a 20 minute presentation followed by a question and answer session via the Zoom chat function and it is designed to support clients by sharing knowledge, ideas and information.

How much do these webinars cost and what do I need?

It is free for all existing clients. Clients should already have received an email invite to the webinar series, and should follow the instructions and book through the email invitation. If you find you cannot attend a webinar, please cancel your reservation to allow others to make use of the place.

The webinar will be hosted by two Outcomes Star experts. If you are interested in how to complete the Star remotely, please take a look at our guidance. 

Please note: We have limited spaces available and we expect them to fill up quickly.

What are the dates and times in July?

Currently we have only one date – Tuesday 21 July 2020. We hope to schedule more in the coming months, so keep an eye out for future invites if you are unable to make this date.

 

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If you have any questions on which Star to use, or if you would like any information on the new Star Online, or anything else, please contact us on info@outcomesstar.org or +44 (0) 207 272 8765.

Free client webinars: Practitioners Guide to the Star Online

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As a result of the increased interest in webinars amongst our clients, Triangle has added more dates for their Practitioners Guide to the Star Online, live webinar via Zoom through July and August.

Triangle will be hosting webinars for existing clients, who are currently using the Star or who would like an introduction to the new Star Online system. Clients have already been emailed details of dates, and how to book.

What will this webinar cover?

Webinar 1: Practitioners Guide to the Star OnlineThis webinar will be an orientation session to the new Star Online and during the webinar we will introduce practitioners to the new Star Online features, such as setting up engagements and managing notifications. It will also explore many of the main tasks practitioners need to complete, including:

  • creating a service user
  • adding Stars and Action Plans
  • navigating the Help Centre and
  • locating the Star resources you need.

Each webinar will consist of a short video presentation, which will be followed by a question and answer season and it is designed to support clients by sharing knowledge, ideas and information.

Please note: We have limited spaces available and we expect them to fill up quickly!

Who will benefit from this webinars?

This webinar is ideal as an orientation session for existing Star Online clients and their practitioners, keyworkers and managers who are already using, or about to migrate over to the new Star Online. Each session will be run by our very own Triangle staff, trainers and implementation leads who are there to support clients and answer any questions they may have.

How much do these webinars cost and what do I need?

The webinars are all free. To attend, clients will just need to book your place via the email invitations and log on to zoom.

How can I book my place?

As an existing client, you will have been sent an email with the dates and information, just RSVP to the dates you can make. If you find you cannot attend a webinar, please cancel your reservation to allow others to make use of the place.

What are the dates and times?

  • Monday 6th July 11am
  • Thursday 16th July  10am
  • Monday 20th July 2-3pm
  • Wednesday 29th July 10am
  • Wednesday 5th August 10am
  • Monday 10th August 2-3pm
  • Monday 17th August 10am
  • Wednesday 26th August 2pm
  • Monday 31st August 10am

 

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If you have any questions on which Star to use, or if you would like any information on the new Star Online, or anything else, please contact us on info@outcomesstar.org or +44 (0) 207 272 8765.

Introducing a series of free Outcomes Star webinars

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As part of our commitment to provide support and resources to our clients, Triangle will be hosting a series of free live webinars via Zoom over the coming weeks.

These webinars are short video workshops which will be 45 minutes long and which will include a brief presentation, followed by a question and answer session, they are designed to share knowledge, ideas and information with Outcomes Star clients. Each session will be hosted by two of our Triangle and Outcomes Star experts and will focus on a core topic.

There are three main webinars, currently, and their main topics will be as follows:

  1. Practitioners guide to Star Online
  2. How to use the Star remotely (Phone/online)
  3. An introduction to Star Online reports dashboards.

Please note: We have limited spaces available and we expect them to fill up quickly! If the webinars are full please contact us to register your interest and we can organise further webinars to meet demand.

Webinar 1: A practitioners guide to the new Star Online

Webinar 1: Practitioners Guide to the Star OnlineThis webinar will introduce you to the new Star Online features including setting up engagements and managing notifications. It will also cover all the main tasks practitioners do:

  • creating a service user
  • adding Stars and Action Plans
  • navigating the Help Centre and
  • locating the Star resources you need.

This webinar is ideal as an orientation session for all practitioners and managers using or about to use Star Online version 2.

 

Webinar 2: How to use the Star remotely (via phone or online)

TWebinar 2: How to use the Star remotelyhis webinar will be of interest to any practitioners, who due to the current social distancing measures, are completing or thinking of completing Stars with service users via phone or online platforms. We will share our top tips on making this work.

 

 

 

 

 

Webinar 3: Introduction to the Star Online reports dashboard

Webinar 3: An Introduction to Star Online reports dashboardThis webinar will explore the Star Online reports dashboard. It will cover:

  • the three new report dashboards for implementation, snapshot and distance travelled reporting
  • how to use the filters
  • how to think about engagements to create instant and engaging charts that can be downloaded to add to any report or funding bid.

The webinar will also discuss what the reports can tell you about how Stars are being used in a service and the progress made by service users. This webinar is ideal for Managers and anyone responsible for producing reports on Outcomes Star data.

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General Outcomes Star webinar FAQ’s

Are these webinars free and how can I book my place?

As an existing client, you should have been sent an email with the dates and information, just RSVP to the dates you can make, or contact us for more information.  The webinars are all free.

What are the dates and times?
  • Monday 1st June, 10am -Webinar 1: How to Use Star Online (Practitioners Guide)
  • Wednesday 3rd June, 10am – Webinar 2: How to Use Star Remotely (Phone/Online)
  • Wednesday 10th June, 2pm – Webinar 1: How to Use Star Online (Practitioners Guide)
  • Thursday 11th June, 10am  – Webinar 3: Introduction to the Star Online reports dashboard [FULL]
  • Monday 15th June, 10am  – Webinar 3: Introduction to the Star Online reports dashboard
  • Wednesday 17th June, 2pm – Webinar 2: How to Use Star Remotely (Phone/Online)
  • Thursday 18th June, 10am – Webinar 1: How to Use Star Online (Practitioners Guide)
  • Monday 22nd June, 10am  – Webinar 3: Introduction to the Star Online reports dashboard
  • Tuesday 23rd June, 2pm – Webinar 1: How to Use Star Online (Practitioners Guide)
  • Monday 29th June, 2pm – Webinar 1: How to Use Star Online (Practitioners Guide)
Can’t make the webinars?

Don’t worry, contact us anyway to register your interest and we can organise further webinars to meet demand.

Who will benefit from these webinars?

Existing clients, keyworkers, practitioners, Licensed Trainers may all benefit from the webinars. Managers in particular may benefit from attending Webinar 3: Introduction to the Star Online reports dashboard.

How do I reserve my space?

If you are an existing client, you will have been sent an email invitation to book your place. If you have not received this email, if the date you would like is full, or if you are a prospective client and would like to find out more about the Outcomes Star, please contact us for more information and to register your interest.

The webinars are full, how do I book another one?

We have limited spaces available, there are 50 spaces for Webinar 1, and only 25 spaces for Webinars 2 and 3 and we expect them to fill up quickly! If the webinars are full please contact us to register your interest and we can organise further webinars to meet demand.

What will I need to do?

All you need to do is RSVP and book your place, and then log on to Zoom or follow the link to the webinar on the date and time of your choosing.

 

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If you have any questions about our webinars, remote training, new Stars, or would like any information on the new Star Online, or anything else, please contact us on info@outcomesstar.org or +44 (0) 207 272 8765.

 

 

Coronavirus update: Outcomes Star and support continuing

Posted on by Donna

Covid-19 update 25 March: Online training and support to use the Star remotely with clients

We recognise that organisations using the Outcomes Star are having to respond quickly to measures to slow the spread of Covid-19, including finding new ways to support their service users.

The Outcomes Star can be used well by phone or video link. We also now offer Outcomes Star training remotely, can support you to transfer to remote support and continue to respond to any issues with implementation. Please get in touch with your main Triangle contact or by calling 020 7272 8765 or email info@outcomesstar.org.

We are not currently delivering training or holding meetings face to face but are well set up to respond by phone, email and in video meetings. We can offer advice on what is needed for remote training. The current Star Online upgrade is continuing.

Please do sign up for our newsletter if you haven’t already, to make sure you receive timely updates.

As the situation and government advice is changing regularly, we will monitor the situation closely and update our response accordingly.

Carers Star makes collaboration count

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How do you get someone whose life is centred on another person to look after themselves? For more than 50 carer organisations, the answer is with the help of the Carers Star.

Published in 2014, the year of the Care Act, the Carers Star filled an immediate need for services and commissioners alike – to measure the impact of “care for the carers”. But the Star isn’t just about good outcomes data. Even more crucial is its ability to engage struggling carers in the first place. And the key to the Star’s success here is collaboration.

 “Carers don’t want someone to come in and take over,” says Victoria Mellor, lead care advisor on the CarerLinks project for Crossroads Together. “There’s nothing worse than an assessment where someone’s in front of you scribbling away and you don’t know what’s being written. It can make you feel a bit paranoid – how is someone going to use that information?”

Example image showing the cover of the Carers Star User Guide and a open spread with the detailed scales for one area

By contrast, she says, the Carers Star is a tool that both worker and carer can see. Its visual form – the star shape – makes it instantly clear what is working and not working in each of seven areas of a carer’s life. Worker and carer fill it in together, in any order, led by the carer’s immediate concerns.

“Carers usually have something they want to focus on straightaway,” says Victoria. “With the Star you can look at that first, so the carer gets their priorities straight in their head. Then you work with them and map things out together – this is going to be your job, and these things are going to be mine. It really empowers the carer.”

How you fill in the Star is equally flexible. Crossroads Together use it for assessment at the first home meeting, but sometimes carers are in crisis or just not ready and it doesn’t feel appropriate to complete the Star. “Then I just use it as a guide and a prompt to bring things back if the conversation goes off at a tangent, and I fill it in when I’m back in the office,” says Victoria.

“Later on, when things are brighter for them, we use it reflect on what’s changed. They like to look back at the journey – they ask ‘what did I say the first time? I’m in a different place now’”. That’s really helpful. One of our main aims is to empower them to take responsibility for what they need and how they can achieve it.”

At the original Carer Star training, some Crossroads Together workers worried that carers wouldn’t like the Star. “But carers do want to engage,” says Victoria. “There’s no typical carer – they definitely keep you on your toes. But that’s the great thing about the Star – you’re able to use it in different ways with different people. It’s very adaptable.”

Stephen Taylor, service delivery manager at Carers Leeds, agrees. “There are lots of different ways to get the carer to engage with it. Carers like the visual stuff, they like the scaling, and they like to see change. The Star is about their journey – it helps carers to stay focused on the bigger picture, not just a bad week they’re having.”

Traditional assessments, he says, tend to focus on what is wrong. “The Star is much more collaborative. Because it’s strengths-based, people are really engaging in their own care plan. Through good conversations, they’re coming up with their own ideas about what works with them. The collaborative approach is a very powerful thing.”

And the collaboration isn’t just between worker and carer. Both Crossroads Together and Carers Leeds have found that the Star can help with spreading good ideas and ways of working across their organisations.

“If an adviser has a really successful Star, we use it as an example in a team meeting,” says Victoria. “It helps show what’s working, say in Liverpool, that we might want to duplicate in Shropshire.”

“There’s real potential to share good practice when you see the variations,” says Stephen. “When I look at the data, I try and look across the individual teams and how they’re doing in particular Star areas. For example, are our mental health specialists doing better on the “How you feel” scale for carers? It’s about asking good questions – what are you doing well?”

“I think the Star’s great – I like the questions it raises.”

Using the Carers Star

  • The Star works well for carers with complex or ongoing needs
  • It’s typically used over three to six months
  • Each scale is underpinned by a five-stage Journey of Change – cause for concern, getting help, making changes, finding what works, as good as it can be
  • It’s also possible to use the Carers Star on the phone – Triangle can advise on good practice
  • For young carers, consider My Star instead of the Carers Star.

The Carers Star is available to all organisations with a Star licence, and full training can be given for workers and managers. Triangle is exhibiting at the Carers Trust Network Partner conference from 11th to 12th March. If you are attending and would like to meet the team, or want more information on the Carers Star, please contact us on info@outcomesstar.org or +44 (0) 207 272 8765.

The importance of relationships with youth in mind

Posted on by Donna

Tom Currie, Outcomes Star’s Implementation Lead, shares his thoughts after attending Oxfordshire Youth’s Youth in Mind conference.

It was a real pleasure to spend a day at Youth in Mind, the annual conference about young people and their mental health. The event was beautifully hosted by Oxfordshire Youth and Oxfordshire Mind with 400 delegates and a wide range of presenters from a diverse mix of organisations speaking on several subjects. But one thing that kept coming up in the talks, demonstrations and workshops was the importance of relationships in supporting young people to maintain optimal mental health.

Relationships: a key component

Whether it was Rowen Smith and Mary Taylor from Family Links talking about resilience and managing difficult emotions, or Julia Belton from Clear Sky describing how she uses play to engage children who had Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE), relationships kept being identified as a vital ingredient.

The value of relationships was also highlighted in the Step Out workshops, hosted by two Donnington Doorstep Junior Ambassadors, young people who deliver sessions on Protective Behaviours to year 5 students. These peer led sessions offer yet another example of how you can use the power of relationships to gain credibility and influence with the people you work with. (They were preaching to the converted with me on this one, as I have been a strong advocate for the power of relationships for a few decades.)

What are the vital ingredients of a supportive relationship?

This question came up in my conversation with Julie Belton in the exhibition hall just after her presentation on how to engage children with ACEs. We agreed that many practitioners would probably say that good relationships are at the core of their work but that they may well mean different sorts of relationships. And that makes assuring the quality of those relationships tricky. Luckily some clever people at Search Institute in Minneapolis have done some great work researching and articulating these qualities in their Developmental Relationships Framework, which is free to download. 

The Developmental Relationships Framework identifies five elements:

  • Express Care – Show me that I matter to you
  • Challenge Growth – Push me to keep getting better
  • Provide Support – Help me complete tasks and achieve goals
  • Share Power – Treat me with respect and give me a say
  • Expand Possibilities – Connect me with people and places that broaden my world

Each of these elements is then linked to three to five well defined actions, so it really is a practical, useable framework. I believe the Search Institute are spot on with the balance of the elements they have articulated. If you want to put their theory into your practice, then you could download the framework and start to strengthen these elements in your work.

If you are interested in using a tool that helps provide a structure for four of the elements they identify, and also provides useful evaluation information, then get in touch and we could talk about whether one of the Outcomes Stars for young people would suit your way of working. It would be a pleasure to talk to you about what you are trying to achieve, because all supportive relationships include good conversations.

Speaking of good conversations, I had a great one with Bethia McNeil  (CEO of the Centre for Youth Impact), when I saw her a few months ago and she told me about the Supportive Relationships Framework. She knows a thing or two about frameworks having written the seminal Framework of Outcomes for Young People in 2012 as well as its brilliant 2019 sequel, predictively titled: A Framework of Outcomes for Young People 2.0.

If you’d like to talk to Tom following his attendance at the event, please call +44 (0) 20 7272 8765 or email info@outcomesstar.org.