Recommendation 19

Our previous work has shown a mixed picture in terms of the views of end users regarding the satisfaction and success of programmes introduced in response to the pandemic. Gathering feedback from end users and frontline workers is vital for monitoring the effectiveness of interventions and improving existing processes.41 We asked what structures had been put in place to take soundings from end users. The Cabinet Office highlighted three structures: a fieldwork team within the COVID Taskforce, which had been examining what worked and the impact of policy in its implementation; the Department’s local action committee, which had helped ensure that information from frontline workers fed into local decision-making; and 10,000 community champions, who were tasked with gaining the trust of local communities and explaining why government took specific actions. The Cabinet Office told us that government might continue to use these structures after the pandemic to ensure that feedback from end users and frontline workers informed government’s actions.42