Agenda item

Report No: OAS/FH/18/020

(Appendix B – At the meeting the Committee was advised that the Firstcare Summary Report did not contain any sensitive information, therefore it was brought forward and considered in public).

Prior to receiving the report, the Cabinet Member for Families and Communities wished to clarify the exempt appendices attached to the report.  He advised that after further consideration, the FirstCare Summary Report (Exempt Appendix B) did not contain any sensitive information, therefore he was happy for this to be brought forward and considered in public.

The Committee then received Report No: OAS/FH/18/020, which followed on from the Cabinet Members’ presentation to the Committee on 20 April 2017, at which the Committee asked for further information on evaluation of the Families and Communities approach, to better understand whether it was making a difference to communities and residents.

Since the development of the first West Suffolk Families and Communities Strategy in 2013, Councillors and staff had been mindful of the need to measure and monitor the outcomes of the work.  This was inherently challenging as measuring change in communities could not be done in the same way as output measures.  Therefore, work began in late 2016 on the development of a bespoke evaluation approach, which included the following key stages:

·         Forming a cross-departmental working group with representatives from the Families and Communities and Policy teams.

·         Undertaking desktop review of literature and best practice

·         Meeting with academics from University Campus Suffolk to gain insight into possible methodology.

The report summarised progress to date; key points to note; methodologies used; and next steps.  Also attached to the report were a number of appendices:

·         Exempt Appendix A – Evidencing and Evaluating the Families and Communities Approach;

·         Appendix B – FirstCare report summary;

·         Exempt Appendix C – Officer toolkit and guidance;

·         Appendix D – Evidence from evaluation exercise; and

·         Appendix E – Case study examples.

The report also provided examples of how the evaluation model had been used and tested and sought the committee’s input into the further development of the model to evidence and evaluate the Families and Communities approach.

The Committee considered the report in detail, and noted the exempt

Appendices A and C. However no reference was made to specific detail contained in the exempt appendices. 

The Committee asked a number of questions of the Portfolio Holder and officers, to which comprehensive responses were provided.

In response to question raised relating to the revision of the Families and Communities Strategy, members were advised that the evaluation approach would support the revision of the Strategy, which was due to start in late 2018.  The revised Strategy would brought to the Overview and Scrutiny Committee for its comments, prior to being presented to Cabinet.  The revised strategy would include a detailed delivery plan which would include the incorporation of the approach into the new single council for West Suffolk.

The Chairman, and the Committee members were pleased with the report and acknowledged the difficulties to measure, score and evaluate projects to evidence the difference made to communities and residents. It was in agreement that the council should continue refining the evaluation approach and developing the methods and ethos. It was a vital piece of work and the council was leading the light in evidencing and evaluating the families and communities approach.

The Committee felt this work was so important that it should be embedded in the Council’s strategy, as its importance was beyond political.

There being no decision required, the Committee noted progress made so far in the development of an evaluation model for the Families and Communities approach.