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What Does it Take to Make a Difference?. Demonstrating the Outcomes. Joint PDI / STRADA MASTERCLASS. Purpose of Today. “PDI has made a significant contribution to the voluntary sector’s response to the needs of children and young people in the context of family and
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What Does it Take to Make a Difference? Demonstrating the Outcomes Joint PDI / STRADA MASTERCLASS
Purpose of Today “PDI has made a significant contribution to the voluntary sector’s response to the needs of children and young people in the context of family and community, from the specific areas of drug and alcohol misuse. It is clear from the data surveyed that a much more holistic, strengths based perspective has been taken by the projects, than just what drugs and alcohol do to young people and families. In some respects this perspective has been ahead of its time. The measurement of outcomes has been to some extent pioneered by the PDI approach. PDI understands that what we measure should not be limited to that which we can measure. PDI is assisting in the development of how we show to both voluntary and statutory funders that the reporting of the ‘soft’ outcomes, the ‘distance travelled’ for many families and young people affected by drug and alcohol misuse depends upon more complex interpretation than quantitative data can provide.” Continuation Study of Practice Issues Evidenced in Projects Funded through PDI; STRADA (June 2010)
Achieving an Outcome • Focus on helping projects understand what realistic outcomes they can support and how this can help contribute to the longer journey • Offer ongoing guidance, support and training to help think through how outcomes and evaluation significantly impacts on delivery and planning • Understanding the importance of the soft measures, how they contribute to the ‘hard outcomes’
The Outcomes • Improved health and well-being • Increased confidence and self-esteem • Increased coping skills • Improved parenting capacity • Increased safety of children • Improved educational/employment attainment • Reduced or abstained substance use
The Indicators • Increased attendance at school • Improved family relationships • Parents setting routines and boundaries • Parents ensuring children access dental/health appointments • Parents understanding the impact of their substance use • Children have improved behaviour • Children are more able to make friends • Families are accessing community activities • Families have improved involvement with statutory services • Parents are accessing employment training opportunities • Increased identification of children at an earlier stage • Young people are involved in less risky behaviours
Progressing Change RELATIONSHIPS THROUGHOUT
Knowing this works Feedback from school Relationship Map with Child
Knowing this works • Relationship is key, using the workers experience and skills – observation. • Strengths based approaches isn’t just for assessment, an effective tool to be used to measure change. • It isn’t a form filling exercise – outcomes are about seeing the difference. • self-evaluation can work as long as it is robust and genuine understanding of how it helps.
Seeing the results Reported Core PDI Outcomes (33 projects – Apr 2012)
Seeing the results Reported Indicators of Self-esteem and confidence (33 projects – Apr 2012)
So what next? We don’t know it all!! We need to improve our support and learning to: • Improving awareness of IT skills and database systems • Continual PDI self-development • Better ways of effectively and supportively involving children in evaluation • Become over complacent in a world of outcomes
Additional Information • Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland: www.ltsbfoundationforscotland.org.uk • Evaluation Support Scotland: www.evaluationsupportscotland.org.uk • Partners in Evaluation: www.pievaluation.co.uk • Outcome Star: http://outcomesstar.org.uk/