Taking a break in lockdown: Part 2
To recap on Part 1, the Carers’ Centre wellbeing were facing the challenge of how to support the health and wellbeing of carers through COVID-19 lockdown, when services had, until that point, been face to face. Part 1 looked at how feedback demonstrated an offline offer was needed and how this was developed.
Alongside this offline break offer, the Wellbeing team were keen to develop a virtual breaks offer. User feedback had clearly shown an appetite for this.
“Although there are numerous virtual classes you can take these days, having a ‘break’ with other carers gives a sense of community and support in a way that other activities do not.” Carla Senior, Wellbeing Manager
The team again turned to consequence scanning to help develop a successful pilot. Looking at consequences influenced the tool that was chosen for the pilot: Zoom. The team knew that many carers are not confident using technology, and an unintended consequence could be frustration at not being able to access the break easily, or at all. Zoom had been mentioned as a tool many carers were already using, so it seemed sensible to capitalise on this knowledge to minimise the risk.
A trial of 2 virtual breaks went well and a full programme of virtual breaks for carers was launched. So far over 55 carers have taken part with really positive feedback. Attendance each session is about the same as it would be for face to face breaks, with some sessions having even higher attendance!
“It really helped to take my mind off things” said one carer, a view echoed by many
However, it’s not all been plain sailing. What wasn’t anticipated, and what wasn’t highlighted from the pilot, was that carers stating they were happy participating online, and carers signing up to virtual activities didn’t mean they had the skills to access our offer. As mentioned, Zoom was specifically chosen as one identified consequence was carers with low levels of digital skills could find online access difficult. Zoom was felt to be widely used and relatively easy to download/access. In addition, carers were offered the chance to join classes a few minutes early, to deal with any issues.
Although things had gone well in the pilot, for the first few breaks of the main programme, things didn’t go quite according to plan! Carers who had not used Zoom before, or were not confident in using digital tools, didn’t find it as easy as expected to access. A few minutes at the start of the class was not enough. In addition, some carers got in touch to say they would like to access the breaks, but were nervous going online. We had underestimated the support people might need. Everyone got on eventually, and in fact left feeling much more confident in being able to use the tool again, but it wasn’t easy.
The team therefore tweaked their approach. It’s now clear you will have support to get online, to help those who need help to take the step to sign up. Anyone who signs up to a break is offered access on of our ‘getting on to zoom’ sessions before they try their first break. A member of staff is on hand using support on the phone, if required, to get people on to Zoom and give them confidence they can do it again on their own. It’s too early to tell if this is the right approach, we may need to look at other platforms, but we want to wait and see.
Reflecting back, there are lots of success so far. Carers are engaging with our digital offer, despite teething issues, and much of what’s been developed will stay in some form once lockdown ends.
“It was such a lovely time to bond with the group and with our family. It gave us something to look forward to and enjoy!! Thank you so much” Family Quiz Feedback
For those who do want something online, a virtual breaks programme works, but there’s a need to be mindful of digital confidence. Most importantly, it’s shown the benefit of user research; small scale testing and being willing to step out and try something new.
Looking forward, the team are not standing still. They plan to expand the virtual breaks offer based on carer demand and feedback as well as testing different ways of promoting the breaks offer to reach out to new groups of carers. Look out for another Wellbeing Team update in a few months time!
