EY Seren

2019

Project brief

My work at EY saw an assignment with the Local Authority with a special focus on homelessness. I was part of a 2 member team to envision an improvement of existing services and devise strategies to reduce homelessness.

timeframe

6 months

industry

Local Governance Consulting

01 context

As a Technology & Design Consultant, I was part of a 2 member team to envision an improvement of existing services and devise strategies to reduce homelessness.My initial deliverables included data gathering and deriving insights to supplement our design thinking cycle. I was responsible for creating a Needs, Demand and Supply Analysis. The data provided by the local authority and the specific public services in the borough allowed me to create a hotspot “map” of the homeless. The SWOT analysis helped us devise the strategy forward, and helped our team contribute to the local authoritys’ Preventing Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy from 2020 to 2025

02 Workshops facilitated

With a focus on our customer touch points, as well as the internal workings of the LA, we sought to document the road map including the perceived blocks. I was given the responsibility to conduct interviews and facilitate workshops with the Heads of Services(Prevention, Relief and Homelessness), and social workers.

03 previous operating model

The Housing Act of 2002 requires local authorities (LAs) to draw a Homelessness Strategy every five years. The goal of the Homelessness Transformation and Service Design was to present a clear strategy to the LA that would enable the department to adopt early intervention approaches.

04 responsibilities

A variety of reasons which include Assured Short hold Tenancy Breakdown, Domestic Violence, Priority (pregnant women and those with children), Non- Priority and Single Homeless are categories for those at the risk of homelessness. We built a Service Design blueprint for those in need of priority assistance focusing on Early Intervention and Exit stages. I was given the responsibility of designing the blueprints and facilitating a workshop with the likes of Shelter, Crisis, Housing Gateway, front-line workers and Advice-Aid.

Breakdown of Data(left), and current Service's Blueprint(right)

05 characteristics research

+20

Frontline Workers Interviewed

12

Workshops held with stakeholders

5

Service Blueprints Designed

+15%

increase of Non-Vulnerable people signposted to help after implementation of Non-Vulnerable Service

05 The Design

I created Blueprints for those presenting as Vulnerable (Domestic Violence, Pregnant), Assured Shorthold Tenancy Breakdown, Family/Relationship Breakdown and Non-Priority (usually single person male households). Specialist workers and case handlers were introduced, job descriptions and capabilities defined and a target operating model set. ‘Non-priority’ would receive Early Intervention care. The local authority did not, originally, have different pathways for those presenting as homeless on the day. Since everyone people required a different degree of support, it was decided that it was ideal to create different pathways for the 4 most common reasons of why people show up as homeless on the day. Furthermore, the council did not have any specific guidance for Non-Priority Homeless people, so introducing a Non-Priority Service Pathway helped provide better guidance to front-line workers on how to signpost and help Non-vulnerable people.

Service Blueprints

Main Pathway

relationship breakdown pathway

ast breakdown pathway

non-priority pathway

extremely vulnerable pathway

to conclude

Running and facilitating workshops. This project was my first introduction to Service Design, as a whole. I learnt how Design Thinking worked, and how to connect and communicate with stakeholders you are interviewing with and designing for.