BLOG: Citizen Led Security Standards
Data sharing has long been a huge barrier when it comes to supporting people experiencing multiple disadvantages. Different data sets, systems, policies and procedures all designed to protect the privacy and anonymity of those seeking support can often hinder them from accessing what is really needed, offering snippets of support in siloes.
Someone going for a housing assessment may have to tell all about how they came to be homeless/at risk of homelessness in order to be eligible for support. This involves questions about their health, and mental health, whether or not they have been the victim of abuse or violence, and if they have the paperwork to prove it. The process is repeated when seeking mental health support. Then again when asking for support with drugs or alcohol. Then again when asking for help with money for food, gas and electricity.
This process is at best frustrating, and at worst traumatising, with the outcome being that people simply give up trying to access the support they need and are entitled to. This often results in a further decline in health and an increase in hopelessness. It can result in loss of life.
What if, with a person’s consent, information was shared between different services, both statutory and VCFSE. After presenting for a homeless assessment, you don’t need to go through all of that pain, shame, and embarrassment at the next stop – they’re already aware. They can see what you’ve been through, and maybe with a few additional bits of information, they can get you what you need.
Gaining trust in the communities we are trying to serve is vital for this data sharing to work. People should have a say in who knows what, and why. Many of us go through life with little concern about who knows what about us – your GP who you trust is out to help you, HMRC in the hope you’re due a tax rebate, ASOS because you can’t be bothered to decline cookies and they know your style more than you do. But what if your information is not only known by multiple services most of us never need to have contact with, but it so happens that some of that information is deeply personal and traumatic, and in the wrong hands can cause you further harm? People need to trust that you will only share what is needed for them to get that support, but this also means that they need to trust you to manage it carefully.
On Changing Futures, we have seen the power of getting lots of agencies into the same room to work out how best to support someone. Having agencies, both statutory and VCFSE, sit together and formulate a plan of action means that people are less likely to fall through the gaps. If the individual is happy for their data to be shared, and understands why it is happening, then we can join the dots across the system and work out how to most effectively get that person the support that they need.
Working with Citizen Led Security Standards (CLSS) we hope to further unpick some of the sticking points between data sharing by agencies whilst considering the legal requirements needed to keep people safe. It is unfortunately rare that we have the opportunity to understand the need for data sharing from both IG and service provision, which can result in things taking longer than necessary. Both IG teams and people working with individuals are working tirelessly trying to meet competing deadlines, and so rarely have the space to think in this way. CLSS is providing the protected time and place for teams to come together and think about how we do data sharing better. Barriers are often created out of fear of getting things wrong, and so bringing IG and service providers into the same room to share their own experiences and understanding of both barriers and opportunities will hopefully result in a more collective approach to data sharing for people experiencing multiple disadvantages in the future.
