How to Get Involved

At Oak Tree Care Services we believe the best way to deliver a great service is to find out what matters to you, our Service Users, and involve you in our day-to-day work. To do this we have developed in consultation with Service Users a whole range of interesting, exciting and rewarding ways that enable you to shape our services.

It’s really important that we work together and we hope some of the ideas listed below will spark your interest and encourage you to get involved with us.

How do you get involved?

1. Give us your feedback on our services.

This helps us identify what we are doing well and where we need to improve. You can do this by phone or by post.

Join a Service Users’ association.

We can tell you where they exist in your local area or help you to set one up.

2. Help with mystery shopping.

This is where a trained Service User deliberately uses an Oak Tree Care Services service to test how good, or not, it is. We use these results to make improvements on that service where necessary.

3. Work with our staff to improve your estate by conducting inspections.

Join your local Neighbourhood Committee which will provide you with an opportunity to change things locally and influence general Service User service delivery.

4. Join the communications forum.

Help shape the direction of the website.

5. Join a focus group.

This can be a one off session on a particular subject, such as antisocial behaviour, where you can have your say to shape our policies and procedures

Involvement Methods

Ultimately, it is for Service Users to decide how they are involved and the level of their involvement, this will largely depend on their individual circumstances. However, Oak Tree Care Services will continue to facilitate a range of options for involvement in consultation with Service Users to minimise the barriers to involvement and to increase the participation of all Service Users, particularly groups who have traditionally been under-represented.

Oak Tree Care Services are committed to ensuring that our Service Users continue to remain at the heart of what we do.

1. Individual Service User Feedback

   Service Users can give feedback in a number of ways, they can write to us, email, call us, register their comments via our website or visit their local office. See our contact us section for more details.

2. Mystery Shopper

   Service Users who volunteer to check and monitor our services.

3. Estate Champions

   Service Users can get involved in carrying out regular estate inspections either on their own or with Oak Tree Care Services staff.

4. Focus Groups

   One off groups set up to focus on a specific issue.

5. Steering Group

   Unconstituted group usually formed in response to issues identified within a specific local area.

6. Communications Forum

   Service Users can comment and can contact us using this website to give us your feedback.

7. Surveys & Questionnaires

   Service Users are either randomly selected or targeted to offer feedback on key services.

8. Service User Associations

   Elected and fully constituted groups reflecting the collective views of their local community.

9. Service User Panel

   Service Users are consulted and give feedback on policies and procedures, service reviews and new initiatives.

10. Oak Tree Care Services Governance, Service User Board, Neighbourhood Committees, Forums

    Service Users who would like to take on greater responsibility in shaping & improving our services.

How will Oak Tree Care Services help?

We’ll listen to and read all your comments and suggestions and respond to surveys, particularly Oak Tree Care Services biannual Service User survey, by taking account of your views and feeding back the results to you.

Support regional forums to give you a platform to air your views and provide financial and practical help for Service Users’ groups. We can suggest a model constitution for Service Users’ groups and provide access to training initiatives for Service Users who want to develop skills in things like running a committee or computer skills. We additionally publish and update a Service User involvement strategy.