We are excited to have been chosen to carry out an external evaluation of the Better Together project which seeks to improve social mobility for children and young people, to break the link between social background and destination. Stoke-on-Trent is one of 12 areas selected for additional support from DfE, working through a partnership of local leaders.
Over the next year we will work with schools, pilot PVI’s and the Better Together team to determine what Management Information individual schools will be providing and detail how pupil outcomes will be tracked to include;
a) the quantity, appropriateness and quality of referrals and re-referrals to Children Social Care.
b) the number of families involved in ‘Early Helps’.
We will be carrying out a Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA) to make the case for longer term funding as they are keen to test whether the Better Together intervention will provide better support for families and children and also result in a saving to Local Authority children’s social care through more effective early intervention.
Reporting will address;
Consultations will be held with stakeholders involved and/or impacted by the Better Together project:
And will be a mix of qualitative and quantitative approaches, stakeholder workshops, fieldwork and interviews/focus groups in order to inform the evaluation and complement the analysis of Management Information and monitoring data.