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Service Creation
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Service Summary
Title
Description
Mandatory
Examples
Entry Guidance
1
Service Name
The official name or title of the service itself, or if the service does not have a name, a short description used to identify it.
This does not include the name of the provider unless it's name is included in the service's official title.
It may be useful to add something into the title that gives a clue to what the service is.
Yes
"Volunteer-led brief country walks"
People can search for key words included in the titles so include the right words that people may use in your service name.
Search returns may return 5, 6 or more services, with the service name usually visible first and hence it is good to make it clear what the service is so that people are more likely to read more details about the most appropriate services.
It may be useful to add something into the title that gives a clue to what the service is.
2
Provider
The name of the organisation/charity/company that runs / is delivering this service.
Yes
Positive smiles
Choose the name of the organisation from the searchable drop-down list (if you work for one organisation there will only be one option, but if you are entering information on behalf of multiple organisations then you will have that choice).
IMPORTANT: When a provider is selected the information recorded in the provider details auto-populates all the contact details in the following fields, Contact name, Contact job title, Website URL, Email address and Telephone numbers 1 & 2.
The information in all these fields can then be changed for each service and this does not make any changes to the information stored against the organisation.
3
Contact Name
The name of the individual designated as the specific contact for this service, if there is one
No
Carol Smith or Reception
If a contact name has been listed for the organisation then this will be brought through automatically. This person however may be a general contact for the organisation - and should be removed if they are not the key person for this individual service.
It is better to leave it blank if the name given actually wont take contacts and cant explain the service (as this will frustrate people).
It may be preferable for this to be a role rather than a person as then it won't need updating as often e.g. 'reception' or 'advisor'.
4
Contact Job Title
The role of the individual designated as the specific contact for the service
No
Receptionist
If the job role has been included as the contact name then this will need to be repeated.
If a Job Role has been listed for the organisation then this will be brought through automatically. If it is unlikely that the person listed in the organisation information would be able to offer support about the service then their details should be removed even if you can't include any other details.
5
Website URL
The website that provides further information about the service.
No
The aim is to add a link here that takes a customer directly to the details of the service being offered.
The URL for the organisations website is brought through from the details recorded for the provider, but can be updated, if there is a specific URL for the service information.
The system will then hold mulitple web-addresses / sets of information. One for the organisation/provider and then one the service.
Very often services offered by an organisation/provider, have their own information on a separate page or area of the main organisation website.
In many cases websites can be very complex and confusing and difficult to navigate for someone who does not have strong IT skills - or where they are navigating on a phone (increasingly). By adding a direct link you are helping to remove the barriers to people accessing the support they need.
6
Email Address
The email address of who to get in contact with if they want to get involved in the service you are listing.
No
If there is a specific person to contact for the service then include their details here.
If an email address has been listed for the organisation then this will be brought through automatically
If it is unlikely that the person listed in the organisation information would be able to offer support about the service then their details should be removed even if you can't include any other details.
However, if this just contains a general email address then just leave it in if you can't replace it
7
Phone Numbers 1&2
A telephone number to contact if further information is required about the service.
No
01234 567 890 (Ext. 4 Option 5)
Preferably the number for the specific contact name if added.
If there is a specific telephone number to contact for the service then include those details.
If an telephone number has been listed for the organisation then this will be brought through automatically, but should be changed if there is a specific contact number for the service.
If the telephone number brought through from the organisation details is not a personal one then this can be left if you are not able to replace it.
However, if it is unlikely that the telephone number listed in the organisation information would be the one where support about the service could be found then these numbers should be removed even if you can't include any other details.
Please ensure this information is for people who would expect to respond to calls about the service - it will create a poor experience where people contact and are told, it is the wrong number.
8
Description
A detailed description of the service itself.
Yes
Befriending Telephone Service - This service helps those who feel isolated or lonely and who may not be able to get out of the house much, to get in touch with others through a telephone service.
Explain what the service is and how it could benefit someone.
The formatting of this field is important as the formatting is passed through into any system that consumes / uses the data.
Use short paragraphs and spaces to make the data easy to read / follow.
Consider the audience and check the readability of the information you are including.
Ideally, the text should not have a reading age above 14 where possible to meet the requirement of accessibility.
Things that should be included as part of the description
Please do not copy and paste information - because this will paste in the formatting from that text which may not translate well into the search tools and hence some information can become difficult to read.
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Service Details
Title
Description
Mandatory
Examples
Guidance
1
Service Types
A list of the types of services that exist.
Yes
Employment Support
Select the best one, or more than one, that best describes your service from the list of .
Where / if you feel that there is no service type that adequately describes your service, then it would be a good idea to include in the service title, some sort of indication of the service provided.
It is also important not to include "Service Types" that are not offered through a service. An example of this would be including the service type "debt counselling" for a service that offers financial support but does not specifically offer debt counselling which is a very specific offer.
All organisations providing debt counselling or debt adjusting services to individuals with debt problems need to authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and have permission to carry out these activities.
These are the types of services that will be searched for very specifically and you don't want to list services in a search that are not able to meet this offer.
2
Attending Sessions
A description of when and where someone can access the service.
No
Collection of individual session data.
3
Audience Types
Sessions specifically for an audience
No
Mental health, bereaved
There should be a list of targeted audiences e.g. learning disabilities, SEND, dementia, physical disability.
Leave this blank if the service generally supports anyone whatever their circumstances.
4
Coverage
the area that your service covers
No
Blackburn West
i.e. if they live in this area then they are entitled to access the service. If this is filled in incorrectly then you will be contacted by people who live outside your target area - and will be frustrating for both the providers and the customers.
5
Cost>Amount
The cost of the service.
No
£5.00
it is important to state it is free if that is the case.
6
Cost>Description
Definition of what the cost relates to.
If Cost Amount not blank
Per week
Describe what the fee relates to e.g. per session. It is helpful to include that the service is free - if indeed it is free.
7
Eligibility
Any specific access rules relating to Age or Gender
No
Gender = woman; min age = 60.
This provides eligibility criteria but currently this is limited to age.
All other eligibility criteria such as gender, needs an appointment, needs a referral, needs to be a member of the organisation, needs an account etc should be included in Description field as previously discussed with links to referral forms etc where needed.
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Attending Session Guidance
Title
Description
Mandatory
Examples
Guidance
1
Session venue
the venue at which the session will be held
Yes
St johns Court
Add the venue from the drop-down list. If it is an online or telephone or home visit then use the venues set up with these as their title.
Please note that a service venue has to be registered before you can add this to a service.
This information helps people to search for services that are physically at an appropriate venue - or that are online / web-apps
2
Session has Recurring Dates?
Is the session a one off event?
Yes
Yes or No
Does the session happen once, or does it repeat?
If the service is a one-off event, then you should enter this as though it has recurring dates and put both the start date and end date of the event as the actual event date.
3
Session runs from
The first date the session runs from
No
01/01/2023
Add the date of the very first session. Note that if this is a one-off event, it will just be the date of the session.
4
Session ends on
The last date the session runs to
No
31/12/2023
Add the date of the last session in the series. Note that if this is a one-off event, it will just be the date of the session.
5
Session Start time
The time each session starts
No
12:00 AM
What time does each session start
6
Session End Time
The time each session ends
No
11:59:59 PM
What time does each session finish
7
How often does this event occur?
Frequency of occurance
Yes
Every Day
There is a difficulty in recording sessions that occur on weekdays as there is no selection for weekdays.
To enter the information, assuming everything is the same for all days, then choose everyday from the drop down list.
What this means is that if a search is done using availability as a search term in Srevice Finder and availability is chosen as Saturday or Sunday all services where "everyday" has been used in the attending sessions will be returned even though they may not be available on a Saturday or a Sunday.
In this case it is easier, and looks less messy, to choose everyday but add a note in the Description field as discussed previously to say that the service is only available on weekdays.
If a service is a one off event and just the date for the event is entered the event will not be returned in an availability search on Service Finder. To overcome this enter the event as though it has recurring dates and put both the start date and end date of the event as the actual event date. Choose every week as the frequency and the day the event occurs. This will now appear in searches but as a recurring event on a specific day of the week. To make it clear that this is a one off event a note needs to be added to the Description field as discussed previously
8
Available on bank holidays
Is the service open on bank holidays?
No
Yes or No
Does the service take place on a bank holiday?
9
Session Date
The Date the session will take place
No
01/01/2023
For one-off sessions, this is the date of the session
10
Select day of the week
The day the session will take place on
Yes if “How often does this event occur” is “Every Week” or “Every 2 weeks” or “every month on week/day”
Tuesday
For recurring events, what days of the week do the sessions take place on?
11
Select Week of month
The week within the month that the session will take place on
Yes if “How often does this event occur” is “every month on week/day”
Last
For recurring events, what week of the month do the sessions take place on?
12
Day of month
The date within the month that the session will take place
No
5
For recurring events, what day of the month do the sessions take place on?
13
Start date
The date of the first recurring session
No
01/01/2023
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