Making a difference toolkit
Our work is driven by the belief that understanding local people’s experiences of health and care is key to providing effective support. A belief that is backed up by a considerable body of evidence.
We have been set up to find out the public’s views on health and care.
How we achieve this goal may vary from area to area but, whatever our approach, every Healthwatch is committed to making a difference.
Why showing impact matters
Demonstrating that we are making a difference is key because:
- It shows local people that sharing their experiences with us is worthwhile.
- It increases the trust of local partners and makes it more likely they will act on what we recommend and what the public has told us
- It demonstrates to taxpayers and our funders that we provide value for money and our work is worthy of investment.
How this toolkit aims to help
Demonstrating the difference you make can be difficult. There is currently no set of standard outcomes that you can use to show the result of your statutory activities and some of the work of Healthwatch can take time to translate into impact. This means that the full value of your work can go unrecognised.
Who is this toolkit for?
Healthwatch staff or volunteers who:
- Want to improve their knowledge and understanding of Theory of Change
- Are involved in helping their Healthwatch establish an approach to evidencing and communicating your impact
What this toolkit contains
This toolkit includes:
- A step by step guide to understanding and measuring the differences you make
- A range of resources to help you put this learning into practice
What will you learn?
This toolkit aims to deliver the following learning:
- Why demonstrating impact is important
- An introduction to outcomes and the Theory of Change
- Setting priorities and how they link to outcomes
- Steps you need to take to develop your a Theory of Change
- How you might use a Theory of Change to communicate effectively
- How to involve your board, volunteers and other colleagues