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Save Targeted youth support: 'Mobilise' activities hints and tips
This section contains hints and tips supporting the activities in the 'Mobilise' stage of the targeted youth support (TYS) change process. The hints and tips come from partners in children's trusts who are redesigning their TYS.
The hints and tips are not exhaustive, and while they offer useful guidance and help to accelerate and deliver effective and sustainable change, there is no obligation to follow or implement them.
If you would like to add to this list of hints and tips, email writing@remodelling.org.
Click to go back to the 'Mobilise' 'Activities' page.
Choosing key roles
- Choose the project sponsor with care. They are key to the success of the TYS change process. The sponsor is the driving force behind the project and critical to success. Sponsorship is an active and challenging role, so time should be taken to ensure the right sponsor is chosen and that they have enough time and commitment to devote to the role. Factors to include in selecting the sponsor include: the ability to influence a wide range of senior stakeholders (especially outside the LA, for example, health, police and the voluntary sector) and the ability to commit sufficient time and passion for the TYS agenda.
- Choose the project manager with care. They must have a can-do attitude and be able to work effectively with the project sponsor. The personality, skills and aptitude of the project manager is more important than the organisation they are from. It is very helpful if they are well networked across different agencies. Above all, they must have credibility in the authority and be able to influence and convince other people. The project manager is the person that maintains local ownership. In many pathfinder authorities the project manager and administration support are full-time positions.
- Choose the senior management group with care. They will be critical to maintaining momentum across a wide range of agencies. Where possible, the senior management group should be an existing group, so TYS is overseen within the context of all other initiatives across the children's trust. The group's working practices should be explicit, effective and action-orientated; it is not a 'talking shop'. To generate and maintain momentum within the project, it is critical that its members are empowered to take decisions on behalf of their organisations.
Launch presentation
- Carefully balance the number of attendees at the launch meeting. The number of people at the launch meeting is a fine balance. If too many agencies are represented, you may get initial buy-in but decision making may be harder. All agencies should be represented in the subsequent senior management group, but it may not be necessary for all of them to be at the launch meeting.
- Ensure you obtain agreement for the scope at the launch meeting. Agreeing the initial scope of the TYS project is one of the main outcomes of the launch meeting. If the scope is not agreed, it will be difficult to proceed with the detailed planning required later on in the planning meeting.
- In two-tier authorities involve all tiers in the launch meeting. Representing all tiers ensures the scope is applicable to all.
- Resist changing the scope after the launch meeting. There may be pressure to change or adapt the agreed scope after the launch meeting. Once the project is underway, any change should be fully justified as it may cause delay and unnecessary complexity. Projects are likely to fail if the scope keeps changing.
Stakeholder mapping and engagement
- Ensure senior stakeholder buy-in from the start. Without buy-in from the director of children's services, among others, and the senior management group, the project is likely to fail.
- Revisit the stakeholder map on a regular basis and identify those stakeholders that are not fully engaged, and develop strategies for engagement. Stakeholders are likely to change their level of engagement throughout the project. You are more likely to identify them if you follow a planned and logical process.
- Allow word of mouth to bring in stakeholders over time. Some agencies, particularly those outside the (such as health, police and the voluntary sector) may not immediately see the benefits of engaging with the TYS process. While early involvement is preferable, you may need to allow word of mouth to generate enough interest to bring in these stakeholders over time. Encourage this by asking people who have been involved in the process to share their experience with others.
- Manage the impact of the sponsor and project manager's backgrounds. The project sponsor and manager set the tone for the project and there is a danger the project will be perceived as owned by their home agencies. The project manager and sponsor should stress often that the project is a cross-cutting one and, more importantly, they should act accordingly. Where there are difficulties in getting this message across, use the Director of Children's Services to help.
Planning workshop
- The plan should set the pace of the project. The pathfinder authorities found a smart pace needs to be set and maintained for the change process to be most effective. There may be resistance to a fast pace, but energy and a sense of urgency is necessary for success.
Project initiation document and communications plan
- Ensure that the composition of the TYS senior management group is well balanced and that its working practices are explicit and effective. The management group is the senior decision making body of the TYS programme and should contain representatives from all significant agencies. Unless the way the senior management group is to operate is clear and explicit, outcomes for young people may not reflect a true multi-agency solution.
- Ensure a thorough communications plan is developed as part of the project implementation document. All significant stakeholders should be included in the communications plan. A comprehensive communications plan ensures stakeholders are communicated to regularly. It helps to engage everyone and makes them feel involved. If this does not happen, there may be resistance to the plan.
- Ensure ground rules between s, services and agencies are discussed and agreed at the start of the change process. This facilitates and enables highly effective multi-agency working during the TYS change process and into the long term.
- Don't delay the project initiation document. The project initiation document shapes, agrees and steers the TYS change process and is referred to throughout the project. It may take some time to get approval for the document. Because of probable delay, it can make sense to commence the project before full approvals are given.
Click to go back to the 'Mobilise' 'Activities' page, or to go on to 'Discover'.
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Last updated on 11/04/2009
