Expertise
Nothing lost in translation
The people who know MARAC data inside out made every decision about what to show and how. There was no consultant to brief, and no fight over whose stakeholder priorities came first: the team already knew.
Case study: coaching SafeLives to build their Data Dashboard
SafeLives built their own data dashboard. I coached them through it.
The SafeLives Data Dashboard is a free, open-access Shiny app that brings together UK domestic abuse data for practitioners, commissioners, government and researchers. Their team built every line of it.
- 12 days of coaching over a year
- Whole-team training and 1:1 sessions
- At least 4× cheaper than outsourcing
The challenge
One place for the evidence on domestic abuse
SafeLives is the UK-wide charity working to end domestic abuse. They hold some of the most important data on it in the country, and they wanted everyone who relies on that data to be able to explore it for themselves.
That meant a large-scale Shiny app serving very different audiences: frontline services, local authorities, commissioners, government policy teams and researchers. Each needed to filter, compare areas and demographics, and download what they found.
The team had the data expertise in spades. What they hadn't really done before was build with Shiny. The obvious route was to hand the whole thing to a consultant. Instead, they chose to build it themselves, with me alongside.
At a glance
- Client
- SafeLives, UK domestic abuse charity
- Engagement
- 12 days of coaching over a year, meeting at least monthly
- Format
- On-demand whole-team training and 1:1 sessions
- Stack
- {shiny}, Shiny modules, {bslib}, {highcharter}, {leaflet}, Quarto
Why coaching, not consulting
The subject matter experts built it
Coaching put the build in the hands of the people who understand the data best. That paid off in three ways.
Cost
At least 4× cheaper
Outsourcing the build would have cost at least four times as much in development time alone. For a charity, that's money that stays with the work that matters.
Skills
The skills stayed in the team
The dashboard is updated quarterly and keeps growing. SafeLives don't need to call anyone in to do it, because the people who built it are still there.
How it worked
A year of coaching, booked when it was needed
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Team training on demand
When the whole team needed a new skill, from Shiny modules to {highcharter}, they booked a session and we learned it together.
-
1:1 sessions on their code
The people building the app brought their real problems. I asked questions, unblocked them and showed them better ways to work.
-
At least once a month
Twelve days of coaching spread over a year kept momentum up, and gave the team time to practise between sessions.
The result
MARAC first. Then they took it from there.
We started with MARAC data. Once that was in place, the team extended the dashboard to Insights and Local Surveys on their own.
Built with coaching
MARAC data
Trends and differences in MARAC referrals across areas, and who is experiencing high-risk domestic abuse. This is where we built the app's foundations together.
Added by the SafeLives team
Insights data
Case-level data about victim-survivors accessing domestic abuse services, to support planning and decision making.
Added by the SafeLives team
Local surveys
Experiences and emerging themes, straight from victim-survivors and professionals across the domestic abuse sector.
What we worked on
A large Shiny app, built to last
- Structuring a large app with Shiny modules, so new datasets slot in cleanly
- Theming and layout with {bslib}
- Interactive charts with {highcharter}, including some advanced
do.call()tricks - Maps for comparing areas with {leaflet}
- Interactive reporting with Quarto
The skills didn't stop at the dashboard either. SafeLives now use Quarto and Shiny for interactive reporting elsewhere in their work.
[Testimonial from the SafeLives team, once it arrives]
Want your team to build it themselves?
If your team knows its data and wants to build its own Shiny app, dashboard or reporting, let's talk about coaching.