Qualities of a good Needs Assessment

1. Qualities of a good Needs Assessment Child Poverty Unit June 2010 ‘Ending child poverty everybody’s business’

2. Case for a shared and agreed evidence base is stronger than ever……. • At a basic level it will allow for better targeting of resources, can achieve buy in from partners and community, develops a shared agenda and platform for a strategy • At a more sophisticated level it can be used to drive more fundamental system reforms, integrated working, movement towards prevention and early intervention, and reallocation of resources to increase VFM ‘Ending child poverty everybody’s business’

3. Thinking about starting a Needs Assessment • There is no hard and fast rule about what is done first or what it might look like • Decide who the target audience is • Partners and staff need to know enough about the Child Poverty Act to understand their role in the production of the Needs Assessment • Consider which partners to engage and when • Are there any existing forums or consultation exercises that can be used to engage partners/staff/community? • Think about producing some data before meeting with partners/staff/community to generate discussion • Consider what it might look like, look at some exemplars ‘Ending child poverty everybody’s business’

4. A good Needs Assessment should: • Demonstrate a clear understanding of what the child poverty picture looks like locally • Link to other Assessments and strategic plans e.g. Local Economic Assessment, CYPP, LSP plans • Give a clear commitment to review • Consider national and comparative research/studies, e.g. HBAI, Shelter • Include qualitative and quantitative research • Link to consultation/participation findings from within the Local Authority • Examine data/issues across all of the building blocks ‘Ending child poverty everybody’s business’

5. Partnership Working Is there evidence of engagement with • Statutory partners? • Named partners? • Elected members? • Voluntary and community sector? • Business and employer organisations? • Families? ‘Ending child poverty everybody’s business’

6. Data - analysis and evidence • Clear reference to NI116 data • Is a good range of data sets being used? e.g. supporting the basket of indicators plus any others relevant to the local area? • Has the data been taken to its lowest level in the local area? • Prioritisation of the data: which data is most important and why? • Good analysis and interpretation of the data • Data and local intelligence has been provided by a range of partners (consider the building blocks) • Have trends been examined? – what are the changes over time and why? • Use of qualitative and anecdotal evidence including case studies, views of parents, children and/or their representatives ‘Ending child poverty everybody’s business’

7. Data – evidence and findings • “At risk groups” are identified and their particular needs are addressed • Levels of analysis i.e. higher level analysis leads to deeper analysis (“drilling down”) in particular locations and with particular groups • Evidence of links with other strategic intentions and action plans, i.e. a sense of purpose and value for the data presented • Data gaps are identified: indication of data sets that could be helpful but are not currently available/accessible. • Data analysis is generally easily accessible and understandable Consider; can a policy officer decipher the data? Is it presented well? • Data analysis clearly identifies what issues are of particular concern and need addressing as a result of the Assessment ‘Ending child poverty everybody’s business’

8. And finally …….. • It needs to be clear that the Assessment is developed to lead to the production of the local Child Poverty Strategy • It is understood by local partners and will it drive them to take action collectively to meet local need • It provides a clear picture of what the child poverty picture looks like locally. • Does it evidence research into what might have worked elsewhere (in consideration of addressing the need of ‘at risk or particular groups) – e.g. pilots/initiatives and other local projects ‘Ending child poverty everybody’s business’

9. And finally …….. • Does the Assessment clearly identify what needs to be done to have a positive impact? • Have you checked you have engaged all the businesses/services you can? (particularly locally) • can you do anything further to maximise the opportunities (work and services) available across the locality? • Have you considered the what the implications might be for; delivery, commissioning, pooled budgets and workforce development etc? ‘Ending child poverty everybody’s business’