Become a Strengths-based Area

Who is missing out on public services?

Despite the pressures of austerity, rising demand and workforce shortages, public services still work well for many people, much of the time. But current approaches consistently fail some people:

  • People who experience societal inequalities like poverty and racism get poorer access to support, and worse outcomes from services
  • When people are in contact with multiple services, those inequalities multiply

So, for some of the people who have the most contact with public services, that support system stops helping and can become part of the problem, keeping people stuck in dependence or crises. Individual services attempt to create better support pathways, but what good looks like to the service isn’t always important to people, particularly people from groups and communities who weren’t part of designing that pathway. And people on multiple service pathways get pulled in different directions.

These dysfunctional relationships with services can lead to people being labelled as having ‘Severe and Multiple Disadvantage’, being ‘hard to reach’ or becoming ‘High Intensity Users’ of emergency services. Some people are repeatedly offered services which don’t work for them, or remain stuck in services designed to ‘move them on’, others, often out of frustration, stop engaging with services, stop paying their council tax, or engage in anti-social behaviour.

How can we take a different approach, and get different results?

The ways we describe that unequal distribution of help tend to locate the problems as being with the person that services aren’t helping: they are ‘complex’, ‘challenging’, or have ‘severe and multiple disadvantage’. But people’s lack of fit with services is never one-way.

We can never simplify service pathways enough to be easy for people who need to navigate lots of them, and who are likely to encounter prejudice, exclusion or oppression in those services and their wider lives. So, the ‘integration’ agenda can’t fix these issues on its own. Instead, we need to tackle inequalities from the ground up. The core elements of our Strengths-based Area Strategy are:

1- Use equalities data & deep listening to identify who’s being most let down. With community organisations, find individuals from those groups. 2-Use Coaching to build trusting relationships, identify meaningful goals and co-design support that enables people to move on. 3-Use System Convening to identify themes from individual work. Bring the learning - and people themselves - back into service design and workforce development.

Read our Strengths-based Area Strategy Explainer or download our complete slide pack.

For communities to thrive they need services and systems that not only meet the needs of local people but create a sense of ownership.

If you would like to explore bringing strengths-based practice to your area, you can work with Mayday through our strategic advice offer. We will work with you to build a bespoke consultancy package that suits your needs, but some of the typical elements of our offer are outlined below.

How Mayday can help you

Think about things differently
Strengths-based Area Model

Create fair and human systems in your area

Taking time to listen

Dream big, set goals, take action

Connect and learn with others

Think about things differently

System Reflect sessions are about sharing our experiences of the PTS Response and allowing space to reflect on your current systems through a strength-based lens v’s a deficit model. During the session we cover:

  • Reflection on a deficit/needs-based system
  • Overview, background and development of the Personal-led, Transitional and Strength Based Response
  • Reflection on the effects of the current system for the people we work alongside
  • Strength-based, person-led responses in practice
  • Potential for internal culture change and external influencing

We recommend setting aside at least a couple of hours for a system reflect, but we can work flexibly to create a longer session where required.

Strengths-based Area Model

Create fair and human systems in your area

Despite the pressures of austerity, rising demand and workforce shortages, public services still work well for many people, much of the time. But current approaches consistently fail some people:

  • People who experience societal inequalities, like poverty and racism, get poorer access to support and worse outcomes from services
  • When people are in contact with multiple services, those inequalities multiply

We can never simplify service pathways enough to be easy for people who need to navigate lots of them, and who are likely to encounter prejudice, exclusion or oppression in those services and their wider lives. So, the ‘integration’ agenda can’t fix these issues on its own. Instead, we need to tackle inequalities from the ground up.

To initiate this change, Mayday can work with you or your partners to deliver our Strengths-based Area Strategy.

Taking time to listen

The Wisdoms is a listening exercise which empowers the people in your community to lead on your organisation’s direction and strategy. The findings are raw and honest, prompting critical reflection for organisations, but easy to read and accessible to everyone.  Wisdoms are:

  • A listening-based research model that starts with an open question, allowing the conversation to be person-led
  • A review of system-led assumptions through the lens of those experiencing it
  • Developing true grassroots engagement in investigating the issues
  • Putting lived experience at the heart of research
  • Creating space for Person-led change
  • Tangible learning that can trigger change

You can read more about Wisdoms and see some examples of previous Wisdoms we’ve developed here.

Dream big, set goals, take action

For Local Authorities who work with us through System Reflect Sessions and Wisdoms, we can work with you to present a well-rounded report offering perspective on what your opportunities and challenges are for strengths-based practice along with clear recommendations.

We will work with your leadership team through a half-day workshop exploring what we have learnt and what areas need your focus first. We will discuss what opportunities there are to continue working alongside Mayday Trust to develop your Local Authority into a Strengths-based and Person-led Area and can help you develop a clear action plan that will include advice on:

  • Strategy development
  • Commissioning frameworks
  • Writing strength-led specifications
  • Ensuring your commissioned services are having the greatest impact on people’s lives.

Connect and learn with others

For those looking to connect to a community of practice to develop ongoing learning and development around strengths-based systems, Mayday offers the opportunity to be part of its strengths-based network.  As a network member, your team will have access to:

  • Regular events for reflection and learning
  • An online learning platform providing resources and ongoing learning around the PTS Response
  • A members newsletter including strengths-based reflections
  • A community of practice to share experiences and explore systems change
  • Support to recruit and train PTS coaches

Find out more about Mayday’s Strengths-based Network

If you have any questions or would like more information on how you can work with Mayday then please get in touch.

Useful reading

Four Steps to Becoming a Strengths-based Place: 2022 What next for strengths-based areas? Report from the Social Care Institute for Excellence, Mayday Trust and Think Local Act Personal

Human Learning Systems: Public Service for the Real World (2021)

New Local: How we lost sight of the point of public services: The case for whole system reform moving towards strengths-based and relational services. By Alex Fox OBE and Professor Chris Fox