During the recent NAEP Conference, a new voting system was introduced which proved to be useful and interesting. Here are the results from some of the votes taken during the conference discussions which included around 400 delegates….
Have you attended an NAEP conference in Blackpool before?
Yes 56%
No 44%
It was interesting to see so many first timers at the conference, which meant, of course, that quite a few people who had been to the conference in the past, but left booking until the last minute, were disappointed.
Are you an NAEP member?
Yes 59%
No 41%
Have you read the anonymous financial appraisal of the model?
Yes 51%
No 45%
Do you think the Government should respond to the anonymous authors report?
Yes 88%
No 6%
Don't know 6%
Retailers you know …… Can they do it?
The DoH have already stated that they came to the conclusion a while ago that ‘retailers' currently in the marketplace weren't ready to operate the model effectively. Here, the delegates were asked whether the companies that they knew in their own local areas were geared up to provide the service levels that they would want to see if and when their own area went down the retail model route.
Yes, they can do it very well - 10%
They could do it, but would struggle - 43%
Never in a month of Sundays - 47%
I believe the National Catalogue
Will be a really useful workable procurement tool resulting in real savings - 4%
Will be too bureaucratic and unworkable - 31%
Will have some pros and some cons - 42%
Will be totally unnecessary - 23%
INA…TA...Confused?
This vote was all about the various training courses on offer for Independent Needs Assessors and/or Trusted Assessors
I fully understand the training aspect and who's providing what - 9%
It's a bit unclear to me - 37%
I'm, very confused as to who's offering what - 54%
Do you think your authority will adopt the model in the next 12 months?
Yes 11%
No 75%
Not sure at the moment 14%
Why do you think the authorities will adopt the model?
Because they believe it can save them money and is financially viable - 21%
Better system for the client - 6%
To fit in with Government policy - 45%
Financial incentives offered by Government - 28%
Why do you think authorities will not adopt the model?
Because they believe it can't save any money, not financially viable 50%
Because they believe it is not better for the client - 22%
They are waiting to see what happens to others who adopt it - 24%
Doesn't fit with their environmental policy - 4%
Is your authority in a position to sell off your equipment store?
No, building is part of a much bigger site - 24%
No, currently in long term lease, 5+ years - 43%
Yes, lease can be terminated without penalty - 19%
Service is currently outsourced - 14%
The final two votes were taken on the first day and at the end of the second day. As you can see, the percentage of people who were 100% behind the changes fell slightly. However, it is important to point out that there were less people in the final session than in the first and so that might have influenced the figures too. As you can see, the people who felt the retail model did not have a future, increased somewhat.
Beginning of conference vote - Do you think the model can work?
I'm totally 100% behind it and think that it's the right thing to do - 7%
I have some reservations, but, on the whole I think it will work eventually - 16%
There are more negatives than positives for me right now - 40%
I don't believe that it will work. It will fall apart and leave us with a real mess - 37%
End of conference vote - Do you think the model can work?
I'm totally 100% behind it and think that it's the right thing to do - 4% (Down 3%)
I have some reservations, but, on the whole I think it will work eventually - 10% (Down 6%)
There are more negatives than positives for me right now - 35% (Down 5%)
I don't believe that it will work. It will fall apart and leave us with a real mess - 51% (Up 14%)