Abstract

The views and experiences of children, young people and families using services should be taken into account in the development and delivery of services and when implementing service improvements. In the CSM exercise, a series of questions were asked about the way service users are involved and feedback is obtained. Questions were also asked about the use of outcome measures to obtain more systematic information about the impact of interventions or user experiences. In the 2009/10 exercise, services were asked about the implementation of the You're Welcome quality criteria which aims to make health services more young person friendly.

At a strategic level, information was sought on whether PCT commissioners use information on user satisfaction with services in the commissioning process, whether they recommended that the services they commissioned implemented the You're Welcome quality criteria and if there was a complaints procedure in place that was young person appropriate. Local authorities, on behalf of the Children's Trusts, were asked if the views of children, young people and their families have been taken into account in drawing up the Children and Young People's Plan for their locality and if children, young people and families were represented on the Children's Trust Board.

This section also includes reports on how services publicise their activities and whether publicity materials are translated into community languages or produced in child-friendly versions. Good information about services and the involvement of service users in them will help children, young people and their families to participate in services and engage with decisions about their care.

Data issues

Questions on involvement, feedback and publicity were introduced in the 2007/08 exercise and questions on the use of outcome measures in 2008/09. The only exception to this was CAMHS services which have been asked about the use of specific established outcome measures since 2007/08. The You're Welcome quality criteria questions were introduced in the 2009/10 exercise. Any changes to specific questions over the years are noted above the table. Not all local authorities completed the Children's Trust questionnaire or the service mapping element of the exercise.

Relevant Policy Documents

• ECM: Department for Education and Skills (2004) Every Child Matters. London: DfES.
• YW: Department of Health (2007) You're Welcome quality criteria - Making health services young people friendly. London: Crown Copyright.
• HLBF: Department of Health (2009) Healthy lives, brighter futures - the strategy for children and young people's health. London: The Stationary Office.