25/09/2009 – Why, how and when community groups refer users to advice agencies and solicitors
Advice Services Alliance has published new research that looks at why, how and when community groups - defined as those that provide support and services to a specific community, defined by geography or shared interests - refer their users to advice agencies, solicitors and other organisations for support.
The research report, 'The importance of being connected', highlights that whilst all of the community groups interviewed were able to give examples of external referrals that they had made, some groups (notably ethnic minority groups) were more pro-active in ensuring that their users had access to appropriate external expertise than others.
Indeed, the research found that some groups appeared to be much more internally focused - with some regarding their organisation as the one-stop-shop which could provide for all (or most) of their users' needs - and, in a few cases, there was a worryingly low level of awareness about what external advice agencies might offer users.
Whilst a number of factors appeared to influence when and how users were referred to external advice providers, the research suggests that personal relationships - developed through previous workplaces, previous good experience, joint working, advice forums, marketing and effort by the community group itself - are of particular importance, and therefore recommends that the importance of personal relationships should be into account in initiatives to encourage referrals between advice organisations.
The Advice Services Alliance report The importance of being connected is available here.