research – Fulfilling Lives

30 06, 2021

An open letter to researchers: A reminder of our accountability
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An open letter to researchers: A reminder of our accountability

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An open letter to researchers: A reminder of our accountability

By Beth Collinson|2021-06-30T16:14:07+00:00June 30th, 2021|Categories: Blog|Tags: public and patient involvement, research|

Beth Collinson is the Learning and Impact Associate for the Fulfilling Lives programme. In this blog, she reflects on an open letter to researchers she recently read, reminding us of our accountability.

Alongside my work with Fulfilling Lives, since 2019 I have coordinated the Sheffield Addiction Recovery Research Panel (ShARRP). ShARRP is a public and patient involvement panel whose aim is to empower those with first-hand experience of substance use to shape how research in the field is undertaken. The panel is made up of those with personal experience of drug and alcohol use; carers, partners and family members of those affected by drug and alcohol use; as well as advocates for addiction recovery and harm reduction. Whilst the panel is situated in Sheffield, […]

2 05, 2019

Why we need to invest in multiple needs – new briefing out now
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Why we need to invest in multiple needs – new briefing out now

News, Project Evaluation

Why we need to invest in multiple needs – new briefing out now

By Chris Milner|2021-04-01T09:22:46+00:00May 2nd, 2019|Categories: News, Project Evaluation|Tags: Big Lottery, briefing, Fulfilling Lives, MCN, Multiple Needs, research|

This is the first in a series of briefings on multiple needs, drawing on data collected by Fulfilling Lives partnerships on their beneficiaries. In this briefing we explore the substantial cost to the public purse created by misdirected and avoidable use of public services, as well as the human, social and economic costs.

The briefing also looks at how, after getting support from Fulfilling Lives for nearly a year, people have fewer negative interactions with public services, including fewer arrests, convictions, evictions and visits to A&E.

To note: this briefing was updated in March 2021. The updated briefing which uses more recent data and looks at outcomes over a longer period of time can be read here.

30 01, 2019

New report published: “Promising practice”, with key findings from local evaluations to date
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New report published: “Promising practice”, with key findings from local evaluations to date

News

New report published: “Promising practice”, with key findings from local evaluations to date

By Jo Welford|2019-05-07T13:41:14+00:00January 30th, 2019|Categories: News|Tags: evaluation, Fulfilling Lives, interventions, Multiple Needs, research, systems change, what works|

The national evaluation team have published key findings from local evaluations in their latest report, Promising Practice. The report:

Highlights approaches and interventions that appear promising based on local evaluation evidence;
Shares learning on successful implementation of these approaches;
Considers how different interventions are contributing the the programme’s systems change ambitions; and
Informs further evaluation activities.

[…]

27 06, 2018

The need for change: Reflections from the newest member of the national evaluation team
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The need for change: Reflections from the newest member of the national evaluation team

Blog, News

The need for change: Reflections from the newest member of the national evaluation team

By Jo Welford|2019-05-14T10:23:56+00:00June 27th, 2018|Categories: Blog, News|Tags: annual report, beneficiaries, Big Lottery, evaluation, Fulfilling Lives, Multiple Needs, research, systems change|

It’s now six months since I joined the Fulfilling Lives national evaluation team. My background is in community and criminal justice research, so I have a degree of familiarity with the target group. I have evaluated initiatives to help re-engagement on release from prison, to provide pathways to education and ultimately employment, and to help with accommodation and independent living. Offenders often have chaotic lifestyles and multiple needs including experience of homelessness, alcohol and/or drug dependency, and/or mental health issues. You can often find childhood trauma, special educational needs or attachment issues as well. What struck me time and time again when listening to offenders and their workers tell me their stories was the lack of coherent support available to people who are in desperate […]

26 04, 2018

Latest Report from the Fulfilling Lives National Evaluation Published
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Latest Report from the Fulfilling Lives National Evaluation Published

News, Project Evaluation

Latest Report from the Fulfilling Lives National Evaluation Published

By Jo Welford|2019-05-14T10:40:06+00:00April 26th, 2018|Categories: News, Project Evaluation|Tags: beneficiaries, evaluation, frontline, Fulfilling Lives, Multiple Needs, practitioners, research|

The latest national evaluation report on the Fulfilling Lives (Supporting People with Multiple Needs) programme, published today by CFE, shows continuing high demand for help. The 12 funded projects have successfully engaged with nearly 3,000 people affected by homelessness, substance misuse, offending and mental ill health.

Beneficiaries who remain with the programme show clear signs of progress, but this takes time and substantial resource. Project staff often need to spend extended periods of time with beneficiaries and have to be flexible to cope with chaotic lives. However some beneficiaries have needs for which they will always require support. What constitutes success varies from person to person and in many cases, success is about developing strategies, resilience and understanding to effectively manage their needs.

The report includes clear […]

17 06, 2014

Carers are individuals in the Act
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Carers are individuals in the Act

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Carers are individuals in the Act

By VicCitarella|2019-05-14T10:10:01+00:00June 17th, 2014|Categories: Blog|Tags: Big Lottery Fund, Care Act, carers, evaluation, logic chain, Multiple Needs, research|

It is, perhaps, self-evident that people with complex needs frequently require correspondingly multiple and complex responses…. wrote Henwood and Hudson in their 2009 CSCI study Keeping it personal. Now as Carers’ Week passes we have, in the Care Act, the strongest rights yet for carers. When put together with the duty of assessment for young carers, in the Children and Families Act, the legislative framework is suitably reflective of the very complexity identified for policy makers five years ago. It is a challenge for the Fulfilling Lives: supporting people with multiple needs evaluation to explore, understand and share how project investment resolves the problematic issues of real life complexity. Those involved in caring relationships shaped by homelessness, […]