Management and Analysis of ‘Outcome Wheel’ Data
Out There is a Manchester-based charity that supports families of prisoners. It provides practical and emotional assistance via services such as support groups, home visits, referrals to other agencies, provision of information and direct work with children. In order to quantify changes in their clients’ wellbeing, the charity use their own scoring system which they call 'The Outcome Wheel'. It measures how clients are doing in terms of their physical & emotional health, as well as covering practical factors such as housing, finance & visiting prison.
The request
In order to quantify changes in their clients’ wellbeing, the charity use their own scoring system which they call 'The Outcome Wheel'. It measures how clients are doing in terms of their physical and emotional health, as well as covering practical factors such as housing, finance & visiting prison. Clients are scored when they are onboarded & at regular intervals thereafter during their tenure with the charity. Out There requested assistance with managing, organizing & analysing this Outcome Wheel data.
The approach
Kim Barea was the statistician matched to this project. Together with Katy Winter from Out There, they reviewed how the data was being defined, stored & organized, as well as what metrics the charity required in order to administer the Outcome Wheel & analyse its output so as to be able to support clients as effectively as possible. Shortcomings in historical data were discussed & addressed as far as practically possible.
The result
A robust Excel-based solution for managing & analysing Outcome Wheel data was designed & implemented. This included a restructure of their data in accordance with database design principles, implementation of controls to ensure data integrity & the definition of clear business rules to ensure consistency in scoring, as well as the creation of visual, user-friendly dashboards. The solution was automated as far as possible to ensure as little time as possible is spent processing data going forward. Towards the end of the project, technical training was provided to Out There, with a view to them gaining the necessary skills to be able to manage & modify their database in future.
The impact and benefits
Katy Winter, family casework manager at Out There, wrote:
‘At Out There, we are extremely grateful for Kim’s time and support through the Statistician’s for Society Programme. Working with Kim was a pleasure and the work that she has developed for us is invaluable for a small charity. Kim very quickly understood what we needed in our data collection and how that was best presented. We are now able to clearly demonstrate our client impact, our client journeys and further inform our funding bids. Kim supported us further in talking through the technicalities of the work and taking time out to train staff on how to use it and how it has been built meaning the work can adapt and grow with the charity.’
RSS fellow, Kim Barea wrote:
‘Overall, I found working on the Statisticians for Society scheme to be a very positive experience. Luckily, I was well-matched to the project in terms of skillset, & the charity were very co-operative. There was a good level of support from the RSS and I felt I was also able to develop my technical & soft skills, as well as deliver the required solution for the charity. I would encourage other statisticians to take part.’