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Cordis Pulse: July 2019

July 2019

This month we were pleased to see the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs report into homelessness and drug misuse. This report found that there is increased risk of problematic drug use associated with people who experience homelessness. There is a higher rate of drug-related deaths, infections among people who inject drugs, and multiple morbidities. People who experience homelessness and use substances have particularly complex circumstances and additional risks which require intensive long-term support. An integrated health, social care, and community care approach to the recovery and housing needs of people who are homeless would provide the optimal model of service delivery. This must include a focus on safe, stable housing and evidence-based harm reduction initiatives.

Our work on two major nationally important evaluations, concerning supporting people with lived experience of homelessness, substance misuse, mental health issues and offending concurs with the findings of this report. These evaluations are: (1) the national evaluation of the Making Every Adult Matter (MEAM) approach, and (2) the longitudinal evaluation of the Big Lottery Fund’s Blackpool Fulfilling Lives programme.

In these evaluations we have taken innovative, bespoke, participatory and co-productive approaches working with people with lived experience to design, conduct, analyse and disseminate findings. This month we have released a blog and podcast which covers elements of this approach. We’d recommend both to our reader.

Download the Pulse below.

Cordis Briefing July 2019

July 2019

July's briefing covered

Co-production with Experts by Experience

July 2019

In Episode 3 of the Cordis Podcast, Will Cafferky explores the subject of working on evaluations in co-production with Experts by Experience. Through a series of interviews with Cordis Bright staff and people with lived experience of multiple disadvantage, we look to define these key terms, and understand how they have featured in our national evaluation of the 'Making Every Adult Matter' Approach.

You can listen to the Podcast on Soundcloud here.

You may also like to read out blog on this topic.

Co-production and working with Experts by Experience

July 2019

Cordis Bright has recently been involved in designing and conducting research alongside an Expert by Experience (EbyE) research group, to co-produce an evaluation of the Making Every Adult Matter (MEAM) Approach. This blog outlines the key lessons learned and is designed to be a helpful tool for co-producing research with people with lived experience.

Court diversion & deferred prosecution

July 2019

Court diversion and deferred prosecution schemes can be a valuable tool for achieving a range of outcomes: reducing reoffending rates, reducing costs to the criminal justice system, and improving wider outcomes for offenders. In this review we profile 20 different diversion and deferred prosecution schemes and assess their effectiveness in relation to achieving these three overarching outcomes. We also outline the policy context surrounding deferred prosecution and identify consistent themes regarding successful implementation.

Cordis Pulse: June 2019

June 2019

If Benjamin Franklin was right and nothing in this world is certain except death and taxes, he might also have added that a third certainty is that they will be unequal.

In this month’s Pulse, the report from the Office for National Statistics which looks at the relationship between how well off you are and how likely you are to die as the result of a preventable condition makes a simple point: The poorer you are the more likely you are to die before your time. This has always been so, but this inequality was improving between 2001 and 2010, but has got worse again between 2011 and 2017.

The NHS England Learning Disability Mortality Programme action from learning report looking at premature deaths by people with a learning disability further highlights the nature of inequality. Since 2015 eleven people with a learning disability died primarily as the result of constipation - a both highly preventable and treatable condition in the wider population.

There are no simple answers to the inequality of early deaths by any part of the population but it is true that the poorest and most vulnerable people have a far greater reliance on support from publicly funded services. Reducing spend which results in a reduction in provision rather than a greater efficiency means that this pattern of inequality is unlikely to change anytime soon.

It has been strange, almost surreal, to watch debates between experienced politicians vying to be the next Prime Minister where there appears to be collusion in the denial of the relationship between the levelling of tax and the amount of money available to fund public services.

Read more by downloading the Pulse below.

Introducing Sonder

June 2019

We recognise the power of working in partnership. For a number of years now, we have been building relationships – and undertaking projects – with a core of organisations that share our values, are experts in their respective fields, bring complementary skills, and add extra capacity. To demonstrate our commitment to work together deeply for the benefit of our clients, we have brought these organisations together under a single banner: Sonder. For further information visit www.sonder.group.

UK Evaluation Society

June 2019

To further demonstrate our commitment to evaluation, Cordis Bright recently became of member of the UK Evaluation Society. Further information is available here.

Domestic abuse perpetrator programmes

June 2019

We have been the evaluation partner for a number of Domestic Abuse Perpetrator Programmes (DAPPs), which form part of the wider response to domestic abuse.

Here we present the findings of our review of the literature regarding the principles of good practice in delivering DAPPs, based on guidance documents and existing evaluations. The review also discusses the robustness and challenges of the DAPP evaluations completed to date.

Cordis Pulse: May 2019

May 2019

This month we were interested to see the evaluation undertaken for Public Health Wales in relation to the routine enquiry into Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). The report presents some useful statistics about the profile of ACEs across the pilot areas. Combined with our research for a local authority in Wales it demonstrates how increasing number of ACEs can correlate with increasing need.

Our research suggests that this relationship is relatively weak, and there are exceptions: there are families with high numbers of ACEs but low current disadvantage, and families with high current disadvantage but low numbers of ACEs. We think more research is needed here. In particular, we need to understand how individuals experiencing risks as children can build resilience so that their children are less likely to experience poor outcomes.

Read more about new research and policy published this month by downloading the Pulse below.