Listening Exercise on our Advice, Information and Navigation Service and next steps

In Autumn 2025 Help on Your Doorstep decided to undertake a listening exercise.  Following the rapid shift of delivery in reaction to Covid pandemic and the cost of living crisis, we wanted to sense check our provision of our advice, information and navigation service by asking:  

What is the best way to help local people achieve their goals in the current context – given HOYD’s strengths and resources? 

We ran a workshop with our staff team, interviewed key stakeholders, collected surveys with the wider voluntary and community sector.  In addition, we held 3 focus groups with HOYD clients and collected surveys. A total  of 100 people gave their views.      

Our overall findings 

Outreach 

Outreach is Key. – Partner 

A mixed model of outreach was recognized as being essential: door knocking, foodbank sessions, community event sessions. At a time of reduced resources, many organisations can meet targets without advertising or outreach. But HOYD aims to provide support to people affected by structural inequalities and so outreach is intrinsic to our work. Partners recognise this and the financial cost of outreach 

Access 

First contact is crucial. HOYD do this so well, building trust and managing client expectations. – Partner 

Being able to access a local office is seen as very important to residents and partners to meet HOYD’s ambition for accessibility.  It is in keeping with HOYD’s ambition to break down barriers to those seeking support and wanting to engage.  

The majority of residents I support really want face-to-face meetings with a named person to establish a relationship, so they can work together to move forward. – Partner 

However, in the feedback from residents it is clear that different people prefer different access methods – some prefer the phone, others to pop into an office, others communicating by email. Some found accessing help at the foodbank a life-line, others found it too overwhelming.  The need to continue a broad range of access methods is clear.  

HOYD’s local offices also provide space for specialist partners: Islington CAB and Islington Law Centre, to reach people who need support in a hyperlocal setting.  Both recognised this as an important part of their access strategy.  

Navigation Plus 

HOYD’s wrap around work makes it better than most navigation services (and more honest).- Partner 

During the residents’ focus group, residents shared stories of being bounced around the system until they came to HOYD.  One person said they had been seeking support around welfare benefits.  They had received misinformation from a national charity.  But coming to HOYD was a different experience.  If it wasn’t for HOYD he wouldn’t have a clue. In each of the focus groups, people wanted tailored support: advocacy when needed, a named person, follow up on referrals and to be kept informed.    

HOYD helped me moving forward.  It helps as HOYD follow up with clients – Resident 

The Advice Project (HOYD’s joint work with Islington CAB and Islington Law Centre) was key to the navigation plus model.  Two of the partners interviewed highlighted HOYD’s commitment to working alongside residents and not ‘dumping’ them on other organisations, which they noted has been happening by other organisations as resources are more scarce.   

Referrals and Partnership 

I wish for your organisation to grow …. You lead not by being competitive with others, you lead by respecting others, sharing information and partnership building with the aim of providing services that will benefit all residents irrespective of their background. – Partner

HOYD was widely recognised as being a great partner with ‘a can do’ attitude. Many partners praised the quality of the referrals HOYD made:  

At the resident focus group, residents commented that they got better outcomes when they were referred to organisations via HOYDs portal rather than when they self-referred.  

Another partner commented specifically on the online referral portal that HOYD manages:  

I am a fan of the portal. More and more funders are asking for ways to improve feedback if we refer to other partners, and the HOYD portal is a good mechanism for this. – Partner

Relational, person-centred approach 

This couldn’t have been valued more by clients, staff and partners.  Having a trained and compassionate person to talk to, was the number one requirement for residents and partners.  

Staff valued having the time to listen.  They commented that when someone initially seeks help, the presenting issue can mask deeper underlying issues that they pick up through longer conversations and follow-up calls.  Residents recognised this too. 

I welcome support that focuses on creating personally centred solutions rather than simply signposting, as I often already know where to find guidance. My conditions mean I can experience sensory overload, so practical, tailored approaches are most effective. – Resident 

Context of advice, information and navigation in a changing environment

“A Perfect Storm” is how one of HOYD’s key funding partners described the current context.  The following issues were mentioned:   

– Reduction of funding and funding streams  

– A cost-of-living crisis that has become the norm, with poverty built into benefit levels 

– A mental health system and social housing system that are failing people  

– Increased demand on services because increased complexity of people’s needs 

– People do not want to be “dumped” or “bounce around the system” and HOYDs system of follow-up with clients was praised by partners and residents alike.  

Summary and Recommendations 

An asset to us and the wider community – Partner 

HOYD is a well respected organisation.  Its partners value its relational way of working and in particular its attention to outreach and open-access.   Residents recognise the importance of these ways of working. However, during the challenge of reduced resources and increased demand and complexity of demand it is a balancing act of volume of work and quality of work, especially as HOYD aims to target structural inequaltiies.   

HOYD has highly knowledgeable staff, who are compassionate and highly professional. Just keep up the excellent service, it is clear that HOYD is an organisation that truly cares about the community it serves. – Partner  

Recommendations 

–  To continue to prioritise outreach, access and a relational person-centred approach to ensure structural inequalities are addressed.

–  To continue a mixed model of outreach including door knocking, ensuring each door knock is carried out with a partner and promoting a local initiative. 

–  To keep our local offices are as open and accessible to clients as possible, within our financial capacity. 

–  To continue Navigation Plus model, including vulnerability triage, referral check-ups and 3-month follow-ups. To make this work more visible to funders and other partners. 

–  To continue supporting the partnership network, meeting partners annually to discuss referrals to the portal. To continue to do regular maintenance work on the portal to ensure it is up-to-date. 

–  To continue our relational person-centred approach and ensuring staff have the time and support to do this and to highlight the value of the relational person-centred approach by storytelling.