The importance of data in improving social wellbeing policies Anne Hampshire National Manager, Research & Social Policy Mission Australia The Community Indicators Summit Brisbane, July 2009
Mar 09, 2016
The importance of data in improving social wellbeing policies
Anne HampshireNational Manager, Research & Social Policy
Mission Australia
The Community Indicators Summit
Brisbane, July 2009
Mission Australia
National NGO - homeless, children/ family, youth, employment & training services.
2008: supported 330,000+ low income & disadvantaged Australians
Vision: To see a fairer Australia by enabling people in need to find pathways to a better life
Strong commitment to research (what impact are we making), innovation (testing new models) & advocacy (fairer Australia)
A 4 component organisational wide approach
Outcomes hierarchy
ProgramLogic
ProgramTheory
Evaluation Framework
Pathways to prevention: The importance & challenge of data
Recommendation 16, 1999Recommendation 16, 1999 Target multiple risk & protective factors at multiple levels (individual, family, immediate social group, & larger community) At multiple life phases and transition points in an individual’s development.
Planning began 1999 – MA, GU, phil $, (Dept of Educ, QLD)
Most disadvantaged urban community in QLD; significant ATSI, Pacific Islander & Vietnamese communities
Whole-of-community model incorporating range of programs & services, rather than single program.
Individual SupportCounselling; ER; Therapy; Family Mediation; Intensive Parenting/Home Visiting; AdvocacySchool Liaison
Parent Support GroupsSupporting children’s school success Lifeskills ;Healthy lifestyle; CraftGeneral support
Parent EducationEffective parenting and behaviour management
Early Childhood Initiatives
PlaygroupsSing and GrowSKiLLS
Community Liaison
FestivalsMeetings
Child Support ProgramPersonal Development programs, Recreational programs
Linking to Learn & Learning to Link
Strengthening home-school relationships
Circles of CareIntegrated model of support for children’s +ve development
Family Literacy Program
Comprehensive approach to literacy development
Some child, family & school support activities
2005-08 600 families participated - 108 Indigenous - 123 Vietnamese - 89 PI reaching ‘hard to reach’
Multi-layered responses require multiple measures:- Standard Statistical tests highlight key changes: child wellbeing; family empowerment; child behaviour; school performance; system connectedness; teacher stress & strategies for connecting with families
- Quotes - Rich & informative on what’s happening for individuals, families, institutions
- Journey mapping - Quantifies ‘small victories’
Measuring inputs and impact
PIP: Preschool Intervention Program & FIP: Family Independence ProgramPIP: Preschool Intervention Program & FIP: Family Independence ProgramInitial Effects & 1 Year follow up: Matched SamplesInitial Effects & 1 Year follow up: Matched Samples
Effect of program participation on preschool children's level of difficult behaviour
20
22
24
26
28
30
32
None FIP Only PIP Only FIP + PIP
Program Group
RBRI Score
Measuring impact: P2P Phase 1Pathways to prevention
Grade 1 performance: Initial Effects & 1 Year follow up: Matched SamplesInitial Effects & 1 Year follow up: Matched Samples
Measuring impact: P2P Phase 1Pathways to prevention
social isolation
support networks, people to trust, someone who cares
behaviour of child in school
parenting strategies
Better $ management strategies debt reduction
in family conflict
relationship with schools/ retention/ more support accessed for child
Main outcomes reported by clients
Cost effectiveness: Phase 1
$ of Pathways (pre-school) social skills & communication programs = $62,000
$ of Local behavioural management (school) program = $236,000
$ of Special School (Dept Ed) program = $417,000(Note: numbers supported by each program vary)
Even assuming ‘worst case’ scenario eg Pathways 25% effective & Special school 100% effective:- $ per participant for Pathways = $560- $ per participant for Special school = $19,879(Note: Comparing similar numbers)
Important work for policy considerations (but $)
Pathways is a model that is:
• Flexible, multi-layered, comprehensive, enduring• Effective – i.e it works• Cost-effective • Sustainable• Replicable• Can be brought to scale • But it’s messy, complex & not (easily) understood in
1 sentence challenging in a policy context!
The model of intervention works! Development is ongoing process Change is sometimes (often) slow and incremental – need
measures that capture such change Changing institutions (eg schools) v important Invest in development phase, research, data collection &
analysis Research – practitioner partnership v challenging, time
consuming but v valuable - find lingua franca Agreement on what outcomes are important Explaining complexity of such initiatives for policy audience is
complex but essential
Some Pathways learnings