Step One
Helping a Devon-based charity develop a clear strategy for growth and resilience
Challenge
Developing a new strategy for third sector mental health service provision during a time of rising need and funding pressure
Outcome
A team aligned around a new, exciting vision for the charity, building on their strengths to serve their community
This is not an easy time to be a mental health service provider. Greater awareness of mental health issues - and the importance of dealing with them - has lead to a significant increase in need. Combined with funding pressures and rising expectations, this results in great pressure on providers of key services such as Step One, who works closely with NHS and public sector bodies to support their community.
Step One is an established part of Devon’s health infrastructure, with around 1,000 people accessing their services each year. Third sector organisations like Step One play a critical role in delivering health services. It is essential that their knowledge and experience continue to be used effectively to help develop a health system able to cope with the rising level of need. Their ability to engage and communicate from end-user to public sector policy-setting bodies is a powerful asset, giving them deep insight into community needs.
Over many years Step One has built a reputation for quality service and innovation, and with initiatives such as Daybreak - their community-based peer learning facility - and pilots working directly with employers to support their workforce, they continue to develop exciting new ways of helping Devon’s residents.
“After two years of change caused by a merger and rebrand, we knew we needed to make some big and bold decisions about our future. Emergent brought objectivity in designing our new strategy, and to engage and challenge our team.
We worked together for four months in a very collaborative and inclusive manner. Matt intuitively ‘got us’ and his overall approach reflected this, adapting easily to work at all levels of our organisation.
The difficult decisions soon became welcome, and we now look to our future with clarity, excitement and determination.”