Changing the world for deaf and hard of hearing people

LSBU and RNID are working in partnership to ensure the same rights, opportunities and quality of life that the rest of us take for granted

RNID works for 9 million deaf and hard of hearing people, supporting their independence, education and career choices. The charity is working to create a world where deafness or hearing loss do not limit or determine opportunity, and where people value their hearing.

A KTP project with LSBU will allow both RNID and RNIB (Royal National Institute for Blind People) to gain a better understanding of the outcomes and impact of their work, which at present can not be measured or evaluated. A generic model, to be used by both organisations, is being developed to provide metrics and KPIs to deliver improvements in social care services across the entire social care spectrum. It will generate numerical and factual data on which informed decisions about the future use of funds and resources will be made. The partnership will optimise the social return on investment generating maximum benefit socially and economically. “It will enable us, and by default anyone who uses the indicators to monitor our services, to deliver a better service and make a stronger case for government and funders about the kind of specialist intervention we can provide,” explains Mark Baker, head of Social Research and Policy at RNID. “If this KTP is successful we will see an increased income as a result of our care services delivering substantial Social Return On Investment (SROI). When you are facing the kinds of government cuts we are dealing with at the moment, being able to prove that there is a return on investment for your service is absolutely fundamental.”

A means of systematic data collection that feeds directly into the service provision will provide hard economic and social evidence. Benchmarking and KPIs will be introduced giving the capability to evaluate the effectiveness of the services. “I have been out piloting my interviews and questionnaires on 6 service users who live in a residential home in Blackburn. I have looked at the time and money being spent on these services and am analysing what effects they are having on the lives of those people they are trying to change and how we start to measure the SROI’s for that,” says Lindsay Hodgson, KTP Associate.

This KTP project will position RNID as a service that is looking to improve and looking to measure their outcomes in a very real way. It will also prove that this charity can offer value for money in a very competitive atmosphere. Working with LSBU academic Charles Jardin has created a virtuous circle of knowledge flow between the university and RNID that is of significant benefit to both parties. Mark Baker is extremely pleased with the progress the project is making and says “without KTP we would not have been able to do this. The advantage of having a KTP Associate is having someone with a strong academic background who despite working within the organisation is not necessarily tied to that organisations objectives, but to the objectives of their project.”