Purpose
The aim of the review was to assess the uptake, usability, usefulness and success of the Mind Of My Own app. This included:
1. Staff response to the tool, including:
a. Uptake (how many staff actually used the tool and what were the barriers?)
b. Usability (of both the application itself and the technology powering it)
c. Usefulness (staff perception of the degree to which the tool helps them to do their work)
2. Child response to the tool, including:
a. Uptake (staff reporting of the proportion of children who used the application having been introduced to it)
b. Usability (staff perception of ease of use for the child)
c. Usefulness (staff perception of the degree to which children were engaged by the tool)
3. Any tangible evidence of change to practice resulting directly from evidence gathered through the application (success)
Methodology
The Evidence Centre agreed to undertake a limited mixed methods review of the Extended Trial in order to inform decisions around further investment in Mind Of My Own. This approach was felt to be most appropriate given the scale of the potential investment and review time available.The review involved an online survey of staff involved in the Trial, interviews with site supervisors, data analysis of documents submitted through the tool, and summary reports from the project team from both the Proof of Concept and Extended Trial.
In the first instance, direct feedback from young people was not sought as it was felt that the child voice was already captured within the tool (in verbatim submissions recorded), and the complexities of eliciting children’s feedback directly would add significant delay and cost to the review. There remains an opportunity to seek feedback from children should it be required at a later date.
Key Results
The aim of the review was to assess the uptake (staff and child usage rates), usability (ease of use), usefulness (staff and child engagement with the tool), and success (tangible evidence of change to practice) of the Mind Of My Own application.
Overall, the response of users to Mind Of My Own was mixed.
- Whilst staff felt the app was generally easy to use and the training provided was good, there were some barriers to usage in terms of device and internet availability.
- The web-based nature of the tool made is unsuitable for use in the secure, restricted access environment of the Youth Justice facilities.
- Most children who used the app used it on a single occasion, and there were limited examples of proactive use outside of social worker visits.
- Social workers saw the app as useful in engaging and getting to know children during a first meeting but not so useful with children with whom they already had a relationship.
- Whilst there are some examples of new information being gathered through Mind Of My Own, this does not appear to have meaningfully impacted social worker practice or decision-making.