Led by Sheffield Hallam University and funded by the Youth Endowment Fund, the study evaluated the impact of the REACH programme; a six-month mentoring programme for vulnerable 11-16-year-olds jointly developed by the Violence Reduction Network for Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland, Leicester City Council and Leicestershire County Council.
Findings show that the programme had small a positive impact on children’s behavioural difficulties compared to children who did not receive the programme.
Researchers also found positive impacts on the children's emotional regulation, peer relationships, prosocial behaviour, anti-social behaviour, offending and school attendance, though there was also a small negative impact on school suspensions. However, these findings relate to secondary outcomes and should be interpreted with caution.
The children involved in the mentoring programme also highlighted the positive experience of it, describing the youth workers as being trusted and non-judgemental and valuing the child-centred approach.
Anna Stevens, who led the evaluation from Sheffield Hallam University, said: “The team at Hallam were delighted to have led this important study which builds on the evidence base on what works to prevent children and young people from becoming involved in violence.
“Along with other studies funded by the Youth Endowment Fund, the report will feed directly into policy and inform future research on mentoring. The study adds to Hallam’s long track record of conducting high-quality randomised control trials, alongside an in-depth implementation and process evaluation which gave invaluable insights into how and why Reach was successful as a programme.”
Children are referred to the programme by their school; they might be at risk of suspension from school, and/or deemed to be at risk of future involvement in antisocial behaviour and crime. The first step is to match the child with the most suitable youth worker.
The initial stage of the programme focuses on building a positive relationship with the youth worker. Ater this the mentoring looks at key themes of social skills, confidence, wellbeing, resilience, positive relationships and aspirations.
Director of the Violence Reduction Network, and Director of Prevention at Leicestershire Police, Grace Strong, said: “Our delivery partners should be proud of the findings of the independent evaluation. It points to a range of positive achievements delivered collaboratively by the City and County councils, schools, parents and most importantly the children who participated. Reach was co-designed locally and was implemented meticulously.
“To now have an independent report highlighting this, the programme’s high engagement rates, the achievement of positive outcomes and consistently positive feedback is very welcome and shows the value of adopting an evidence-based approach to intervention design and delivery. We look forward to continuing to embed the learning from the programme into how services work with children at risk of suspension, exclusions and involvement in crime.”
Read the full report.
