The European Platform for Investing in Children

1. The European Platform for Investing in Children Stijn Hoorens European Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion: Stakeholder Dialogue

2. Outline Introducing EPIC ‘Practices that work’ section and evaluation framework Stakeholder engagement with EPIC

3. Outline Introducing EPIC ‘Practices that work’ section and evaluation framework Stakeholder engagement with EPIC

4. European Platform for Investing in Children (EPIC) • Aim: to share best practices, and to foster cooperation and mutual learningon child focused policies and practices • Dissemination of practices within new EC Recommendation on ‘Investing in children’ • EPIC is a platform that aims to improve exchange of information between policymakers and stakeholders Photo by rifqidahlgren via Flickr. Used in accordance with Creative Commons License CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.

5. Key policy objectives of EPIC • Support parents’ participation in the labour market • Invest in early childhood education and care • Provide for adequate living standards through a combination of benefits • Support children’s right to participate in play, culture and decisionmaking • Enhance family support and the quality of alternative care settings

7. Outline Introducing EPIC ‘Practices that work’ section and evaluation framework Stakeholder engagement with EPIC

8. Role of the ‘Practices that Work’ section

9. What constitutes an evidence-based practice in social policy? • “Evidence” is difficult to define outside of the laboratory • Human interactions are complicated and external conditions are difficult to control for • Need to be more inclusive about acceptable evidence • Criteria for EBP in the medical profession are rigorous and rigid: Established via multi-site, double blind, randomised-controlled trials

10. EBP definitions shareelements of programme evaluation • Is designed to maximize likelihood that impactsare due to programme itself • Has sufficientsample size • Shows effects that are statistically and practically significant • Utilizes outcome measures that make sense

11. EPIC: A two-pronged approach to sharing practices Practices implemented in MS Within scope of EPIC? no Discard yes • Resource for sharing ideas and lessons learned • Users submit content on practice experience in the field • Can capture innovative practices and knowledge Practice User Registry Has practice been evaluated? no yes Does evidence for effectiveness satisfy criteria • Resource for evidence-based practices • Reviewers rank practice evaluations across several domains of quality • Only practices that prove to be effective in at least one domain are posted no Evidence-Based Practices yes

13. Evaluation Framework: Three evaluation criteria

14. The evidence levels are tiered Evidence of effectiveness Enduring impact Transferability

15. The evidence levels are tiered Best practice Evidence of effectiveness Enduring impact Transferability

16. The evidence levels are tiered Emergent practice Evidence of effectiveness Enduring impact Transferability

17. The evidence levels are tiered Promising practice Evidence of effectiveness Enduring impact Transferability

18. For example

19. Why engage with EBP Platforms? • Gaining momentum and scale • The sharing of new and untested practices, through the User Registry, can help new ideas to gain momentum and scale • Reaping the low hanging fruit • If a practice is known to be effective, sharing that information can help improve outcomes for a wider population • Recognition • EBP platforms can help your practice gain recognition, and in some cases, help to ensure continued funding • Responsible decision-making • EBPs provide confidence that practices are effective

20. Alignment of the ‘Practices that work’ section with the Recommendation • Evidence-Based Practices and practices from the User Registry are categorised by three pillars and policy categories: • These three pillars and the policy categories within them are derived from the European Commission’s Recommendation “Investing in children: Breaking the cycle of disadvantage”. • The Recommendation uses the pillar structure to organise the policy areas addressing child poverty and social exclusion and promoting children's well-being. • Practices on EPIC are assigned to these pillars and policy categories according to those which they align most soundly with.

24. Practice updateEvidence Based Practice • 7 Evidence Based Practices uploaded since May • RiskWatch • Language delay • First Karelia Youth Programme.  • GesundeKitas • Scottish smoke-free legislation practice • Early Years practice • ProgramaJuego

25. Support parents’ participation in the labour market 55 practices in user registry 1 Evidence Based practice Provide for adequate living standards through a combination of benefits 4 practices in the user registry Reduce inequality at a young age by investing in early childhood education and care 29 practices in user registry 2 Evidence Based Practices Improve education systems’ impact on equal opportunities 5practices in user registry 3 Evidence Based Practices Improve the responsiveness of health systems to address the needs of disadvantaged children 29 practices in user registry 2 Evidence Based Practices Provide children with a safe, adequate housing and living environment none Enhance family support and the quality of alternative care settings 17 practices in user registry 5 Evidence Based Practices 59 practices in the user registry 1 Evidence Based Practices 53 practices in the user registry 9 Evidence Based Practices Overview of EBPs and User registry practices in each pillar Support the participation of all children in play, recreation, sport and cultural activities 9 practices in the user registry, 1 Evidence Based Practice Put in place mechanisms that promote children’s participation in decision making that affect their lives 3practices in the user registry, 4 Evidence Based Practice 10 practices in the user registry 5 Evidence Based Practices

26. Outline Introducing EPIC ‘Practices that work’ section and evaluation framework Stakeholder engagement with EPIC

27. The platform is only as good as its users’ input ‘Practices that work’ sections depend on input from third parties Stakeholders can help EPIC gain exposure to experts, policymakers and practitioners We encourage you to submit practices to the ‘Practices that Work Section’, to interact with EPIC and to suggest improvements We solicit feedback on how to improve the reach and leverage of the platform

28. EPIC will aim to focus on stakeholder interaction • There is now a “partners” section, providing contacts and links to partner organisations • We are currently investigating ways to engage with stakeholders • There are several options of doing this: • Forum • Feedback form • Other?

29. Further options for involvement http://europa.eu/epic Feel free to contact us Stijn Hoorens, Associate Director, Brussels Office, RAND Europe hoorens@rand.org Chris van Stolk Director, Employment, Education and Social Policy, RAND Europe stolk@rand.org Notifying us of (new) reports, events and further news items on the EPIC website Submission of practices and user feedback Recruitment of volunteers to provide feedback on website’s user-friendliness and efficacy