Earlier this year our hard working customers in Gloucestershire asked us about implementing Express and on Tuesday 12th June they went live! Throughout the time leading up to the go live date they maintained a constant focus on training and promotion, working with the Mind Of My Own team to ensure a smooth and successful implementation. We are thrilled to welcome them to Express.
About Gloucestershire
As you may know Gloucestershire is a rural county in the south west of England, encompassing six districts. We first met in February 2015 when the team welcomed them on board with OneApp. Going from strength to strength they now have 249 young people using their own OneApp account.
Ambassadors and GO LIVE
The Gloucestershire ambassadors are a group of dedicated young people aged between 16-25 who are supported by services. They are at the heart of everything Mind Of My Own, helping deliver direct work tools and training to foster carers and practitioners, designing Mind Of My Own communication leaflets and supporting Gloucestershire in asking questions about the apps and hearing the views of children and young people.
The ambassadors led the promotion for the launch of Express last week. Throughout the lead up to training day and go live they worked hard to gather momentum around Express. A few days before the big event the ambassadors transformed into Mind Of My Own elves, leaving launch flyers, stickers for workers’ phones, Mind Of My Own balloons and sweets on the desks belonging to the children’s teams! All the hard work paid off, the Express launch went really well. On the day training sessions were on offer throughout with everyone from the head of quality, the communication officer and a range of workers attending. It was great to see everyone stepping up and taking part in what looks to be a very successful implementation. Feedback on the day was that the training was a success.
Express Use
Immediately after the launch saw Darin, a lead professional for the disability service become the first worker to use Express with a child or young person in Gloucestershire. He was able to sit with one of the children he supports and go through the app from start to finish; as the child gained confidence the only help needed was typing and understanding a few words. Darin was the winner of the ‘Worry Monster’ prize, for his efforts and positive attitude towards implementing and using Express.
Since the launch there have many workers have used the app with the children and young people they work with. One social worker said:
“I used it with a young man who is 14 and autistic who I had not met before. I asked him if he would have a go on my phone. He loved using Express on the phone. I got so much information from him using and a lot more. He was very talkative. I’m going to send him a Thank You card for using Express.”
