- An Eco-System of Support for Families
Learning from the Formative Evaluation of A Better Start Southend.
Author(s): University of Essex, ABSS
Robust evaluation allows us to adapt and evolve services, demonstrate impact and drive systems change.
There are four parts to the evaluation of the ABSS services, projects and activities:
Regular and ongoing monitoring of the delivery and performance of our projects and services, using data collected by ABSS delivery partners, and collated and analysed by our partners at Southend City Council.
The ABSS Programme-level Theory of Change sets out how we think our services will achieve our aims, working alongside the national outcomes framework across the three workstreams; Diet & Nutrition, Communication & Language Development, and Social & Emotional Development.
Monitors the impact that the national A Better Start (ABS) programme is having in the five ABS areas: Blackpool, Bradford, Lambeth, Nottingham and Southend. The evaluation is being carried out by a consortium led by the National Centre for Social Research, on behalf of the ABS funders, the National Lottery Community Fund.
First National Report
Second National Report
Southend City Council brought its access to and expertise with data into the ABSS partnership. The City Council’s data team collated and analysed data that was relevant to ABSS, including data about attendance at ABSS projects and services, healthcare and education data, and local population statistics.
In March 2020, the University of Essex’s Division of Social Work and Social Justice at the School of Health and Social Care came on board to support ABSS with the evaluation of the ABSS programme.
Their focus was on the Formative evaluation, looking primarily at the effectiveness of individual projects and people’s experiences taking part. In Summer 2022, they examined common themes reported across all of the projects, producing a Metathematic analysis report.
The independent Summative Evaluation of ABSS was commissioned to identify the impact that the ABSS programme as a whole had on children and families in Southend. RSM conducted research at three crucial points, in 2022, 2023 and 2024, collecting and evaluating evidence on ABSS Programme-wide outcomes, along with our academic partner, the University of Essex.
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