Template Info: EVAL‐03 Version 2.2
Good Start Breakfast Club External Evaluation Brief
Program name Strategic Alignment
Good Start Breakfast Club Strategic Goal Four: Advance the health, wellbeing and resilience of individuals, families and communities made vulnerable by dispossession, migration, displacement, illness or disadvantage Strategic Outcomes: People made vulnerable by migration can access services, housing and resources to support their health and well‐being.
Link to other programs
FoodREDi (formerly Food Cents), Food security
Program Location(s)
Schools across all States and Territories
Expected Program Duration
Ongoing
Key Contact
Helen Barnard – National Coordinator, Food Security
Prepared by: Helen Barnard
Date: 1500915
Version Number: 1.0
1. Background and Context Red Cross has been supporting breakfast clubs in Australia since 1991. In 2003 Sanitarium became a national partner and together with Red Cross created The Good Start Breakfast Club (GSBC) program. The program is part of Red Cross’ work to address food insecurity in Australia, in a socially inclusive, child development framework. Food Security is about making sure people have enough of the right type of food every day to keep them healthy. Evidence indicates that up to 34% of children from socially disadvantaged households experience some level of food insecurity (insufficient food) and that those children in food‐insecure households are more likely to experience multiple challenges in their lives and adverse health, social and development outcomes such as days away from school and atypical emotional symptoms and behavioural difficulties. Food security responses need to responsive to the whole child, which upholds their dignity and supports their future development. Red Cross coordinates breakfast clubs in schools around the country, helping primary school children to get a healthy start to the school day by providing a nutritious breakfast to children who may otherwise go without. Based on community development principles, the program strives to work in partnership with schools and communities to build capacity and sustainability. Children are supported to learn daily life routines and habits, including hand washing, dental hygiene, sitting down to eat together and how to prepare their own breakfast. The program also aims to deliver nutrition information to families and the community, helping them to make healthier food choices for their children and families. Red Cross was for a long time the largest school breakfast program provider nationally. Over recent years the external landscape of breakfast programs has changed, with a range of new organisations emerging whose mandate is simply to provide food to schools and in some instances offer breakfast clubs and / or nutrition programs. These range from large national initiatives such as Foodbank, to state‐based initiatives such as Ardoch Youth Foundation, Kick Start 4 Kids, and smaller community based responses. In particular Foodbank have been increasing their delivery of breakfast clubs in Western Australia, South Australia and more recently Victoria. With a high public profile and links to the corporate sector, they have been successful in attracting significant corporate sponsorships and Government grants, including a $13.7 million (AUD) commitment by the Victorian Government to Foodbank Victoria to fund school breakfasts. To that end Red Cross is no longer the largest national provider of breakfast clubs and in many instances we are not only competing with Foodbank, we are also duplicating the provision of a breakfast clubs to schools. Efforts
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Template Info: EVAL‐03 Version 2.2 have been made to either partner with or work alongside Foodbank, which in some states works well but this has not yet occurred at a National level. 1.1
Description of the program
Goal To improve the health, learning and developmental outcomes of vulnerable school aged children through improved nutrition and social relationships. Program Outcomes: 1. School aged children start the day nourished by a healthy breakfast 2. Educational participation of schools aged children is increased 3. School aged children have knowledge of healthy eating choices Intermediate Outcomes: i. Capacity Building: Schools & community groups have increased capacity to deliver breakfast programs where they are needed ii. Quality Service Delivery: Areas of focus and priority for Red Cross have quality Good Start Breakfast Clubs in operation iii. Humanitarian Response (Supply Only): Schools experiencing vulnerability have access to healthy food Red Cross’ approach to addressing food (in) security is built on three pillars: ‘Food Availability’; ‘Food Access’ and ‘Food Utilisation’, which form the basis of food security. Food availability ‐ ensuring there are sufficient culturally appropriate, nutritious foods consistently available. Food access ‐ ensuring that people have the right resources to obtain food for a nutritious diet. This can include access to transport sufficient income and also depend on the food production and distribution system. Food utilisation ‐ ensuring that people have the knowledge and skills to make healthier food choices and prepare meals and store food appropriately. The GSBC program aims to address issues around the access and utilisation pillars by providing a healthy breakfast and promoting healthy eating messages, and works to develop long term sustainable solutions to food problems in disadvantaged areas. The GSBC program incorporates 4 different models of delivery which cater to the capacity and needs of the school and Red Cross’ capacity to support the school. Using a community development approach Red Cross works closely with schools and communities to build the knowledge, skills and capacity of the school and community to be able to manage the club on their own with locally based partnership. As this is achieved, Red Cross employs a staged exit strategy in agreement with the school. The GSBC program is predominantly funded through Red Cross internal funds. States and Territories are allocated a program budget for the implementation of the program at local level. The program is also supported by a corporate donation from Sanitarium who has been in partnership with the Red Cross to deliver the program for over 10 years. Sanitarium provides a cash donation and a selection of food products including breakfast cereals, soy milk and spreads. Currently the GSBC program is delivered by approximately 1200 volunteers in 177 schools across metropolitan, regional and remotes areas of Australia. The GSBC provides breakfast for close to 5000 school kids each year, with over 600,000 breakfasts provided.
1.2
Rationale for the evaluation
The Australian Red Cross Board have asked for a Program Effectiveness Review (PER) of all programs, with a number of programs being nominated for external impact evaluations. The key priority of the PER is to inform executive decision making regarding programs and program support costs including such considerations as whether to improve, scale up/down, replicate or cease programs and whether program support costs are appropriate. Secondary priorities of the PER include supporting accountability and decision making, informing learning and feeding into advocacy efforts.
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Stakeholders
Schools: o Students; Principals / Teachers; auxiliary staff; school based volunteers and parents o Responsibility for all coordination and supervision of the breakfast club including encouraging, supporting, and working with students, volunteers, and parents. Financial corporate partners o Sanitarium, Trusts and Foundations: Ronwynne Trust (SA), Ernest Heine (NSW) o Provision of financial, product and in‐kind support Partner agencies o Foodbank, Second Bite, Oz Harvest, Service clubs, local businesses and local community organisations o Provision of cheap or free food, logistical support, Volunteers and program support Wider community o Parents, community organisations, service clubs and groups o Donations of support including resources (time, financial and material), volunteering. They also provide increased leverage for government engagement, advocacy and PR initiatives Red Cross staff and volunteers o Food Security staff in state and territory offices ‐ are the frontline of service delivery and therefore any recommendations arising from the evaluation will be implemented by them and will have the greatest direct on their roles and the role of volunteers. o Executive Directors ‐ are responsible for the delivery of quality programs and services within their jurisdiction, including GSBC o MF&C – marketing and fundraising, media, social and digital media, communications, contract / relationship management with Corporate partners and potential partners
2. Terms of Reference 2.1 To determine the relevance and appropriateness of the program in the context of Red Cross’ Strategy 2020. To what extent are GSBC delivered in areas of locational disadvantage? To what extent are we meeting current needs and what are the opportunities to deliver the program in alternative settings or with other population groups? To what degree are stakeholders involved in program planning, implementation and review activities? (link to community voice outcomes) 2.2 To determine the extent to which the GSBC program is achieving its defined (and other less defined) intermediate and program outcomes. To what extent have children increased their knowledge of healthy eating and what activities have significantly contributed to this outcome? Have there been any unintended outcomes of this program? 2.3 To what extent has the program been an entry point into local communities and contributed to building the capacity of schools and communities to address local food security issues? 2.4 To examine the internal and external factors that impact on the programs efficiency and effectiveness to inform decisions regarding the future of the program. What is the likelihood that individual children, families, schools and communities would be able to access healthy food if the program did not exist? Does the Red Cross breakfast club program offer a valuable point of difference to other organisations, and if so, how can we market this to strengthen and increase our reach and influence? 3. Deliverables/ Activities 3.1 Deliverables
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A written report will be provided covering: Analysis of relevance, appropriateness, effectiveness and where possible impact, of program Analysis of identified / unmet food security need in Australian communities An analysis of GSBC operations in each S/T, detailing good practice and areas for improvement Discussion / analysis of the current market landscape and opportunities for Red Cross Recommendations for the future strategic direction of GSBC with specific focus on possible intended outcomes, activities, measures and data collection instruments. A presentation inclusive of the following content: evaluation purpose, scope, methodology including limitations, and findings and recommendations of the evaluation. An article (based on the evaluation methodology/findings) for submission to a credible peer‐reviewed journal.
3.2 Activities #
Task
Time
1.
Establish a project reference group (including terms of reference for the group)
Early – mid October 2015
2.
Develop and submit a Human Research Ethics committee application for the
Late October 2015
evaluation (as appropriate) 3.
Appoint Evaluation consultant (as project commences)
October 2015
4.
Review existing program documentation (reviews, evaluations, reports etc.)
November 2015
5.
Evaluation consultant to develop a detailed project plan, to be reviewed and
Mid‐November
agreed to by the project reference group, including data collection templates. 6.
Identify sample size and recruit staff, volunteer and internal / external key
Mid‐November
stakeholders for interviews and/or focus group discussions 7.
Conduct staff, volunteer and internal / external key stakeholder interviews
Late Nov / Early December 2015
and/or focus group discussions (as appropriate) 8.
Undertake analysis of quantitative and qualitative data
December‐ January 2016
9.
Submit draft report to project reference group for review
End January 2016
10. Reference group to have comments back to evaluator
Mid February 2016
11. Finalise report and other deliverables
Late February 2016
12. Submit final report
29 February 2016
4. Managing the evaluation 4.1 Reference Group membership1 Members of the reference group will include (all ARC staff): Helen Barnard, National Coordinator, Service Support Holley Jones, National Senior Project Officer, Service Development Lynn Arvanatakis, Team Leader, Community Services Victoria Kate Baker, Program Officer Food Security, Community Services Victoria 1
see Information note: Evaluation Reference Group Terms of Reference for advice on the role of a Reference Group
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Mandy Ferguson, Senior Project Officer Food Security, New South Wales Program Coordinator Evaluation, Program Effectiveness, Accountability and Learning team
An invitation to participate will be sought from: (no more than 4)
1 x Red Cross GSBC volunteer (location to be determined) 1 x teacher from a Metropolitan GSBC school 1 x teacher from a Regional / remote GSBC school 1 x GSBC coordinator from a GSBC school (location to be determined) 1 x volunteer from a Metropolitan GSBC school (Red Cross or School based volunteer) 1 x volunteer from a Regional / remote GSBC school (Red Cross or School based volunteer)
Administrative support for the Reference Group will be provided by the Senior Program Officer Service Development
4.2 Meeting schedule and frequency Meeting schedule
Expected date or frequency
Reference Group
Monthly (or more frequently, or as required)
Evaluation Manager and Evaluator
Fortnightly, or as required
4.3 Evaluation Manager Helen Barnard National Coordinator Service Support (08) 8100 4571 or 0466 549 059
[email protected] 4.4 Accountable Manager Kerry McGrath Head Community Programs/Acting Director Planning and Reporting (03) 8327 7728 or 0439 862 742
[email protected]
5. Methods and sources of data collection Suggested sample Metropolitan, Regional and Remote schools across all 4 models of GSBC operation Schools that have exited the program Suggested Methods: Analysis of program documentation including reports and surveys Telephone and face to face interviews / survey or focus groups – Red Cross staff, school representatives, Volunteers and students, parents and community members, local business and service clubs Observations of selected sample of GSBCs in operation Focus discussion groups with children attending a selected / representative sample of participating schools in GSBC
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Activity evaluation sheet for children to complete in GSBC time Evaluation sheet to be sent home for parents / carers to complete
Sources of data: Red Cross GSBC Strategy Paper 2007 Red Cross Food Security Internal Review ‐ Final Report 2011 Red Cross GSBC National Reflection 2012 Red Cross Program Effectiveness Review 2014 Evidence Review ‐ Good Start Breakfast Club Program. Lisa Clark, Food Security Australian Red Cross – 2014 Red Cross GSBC Rapid Review 2015 Red Cross volunteer engagement survey 2015 National board KPI report ‐ December 2014, March 2015 and June 2015
6. Budget and timeframe Budget (ex GST):
To be determined
Time frame for commencement:
19th October 2015
Time frame for completion:
29th February 2016
7. Key risks and mitigation strategies 7.1 Risks This evaluation will require ethics approval by a Human Research Ethics Committee due to the involvement of service recipients, including primary school aged children and staff members in interviews, observations and/or focus groups. Potential Risk
Mitigation strategy
Parents may not give consent for child
Provide a hard copy evaluation / activity sheet for children to complete in GSBC time
involvement in interviews or observations sessions Identification of individuals who participate in interviews and/or focus groups Difficulty recruiting sufficient participants for interviews and/or focus groups Involvement in the evaluation may increase anxiety amongst evaluation participants regarding Red Cross’s staff regarding future intent in relation to GSBC program
Review past qualitative data from previous reviews / reports Interview a small sample to clarify the analysis of that data. De‐identification of all interview and focus group transcripts. Aggregated reporting of data. Use of composite case studies (if applicable). Review past qualitative data from previous client satisfaction surveys and interview a small sample to clarify the analysis of that data. Development and implementation of a communication strategy to ensure that participants are informed of the purpose of the evaluation. Participants to be given opportunity to withdraw their consent at all stages of their involvement in the evaluation. A summary of the evaluation findings will be made available to participants and other interested parties. The full report will also be available to staff via the ARC Research Register.
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Template Info: EVAL‐03 Version 2.2 Time frames for data collection and analysis are exceeded Staff are unwilling to speak openly to inform the evaluation
Delays incurred as a result of the Human Research Ethics approval process
Project management plan to be developed with identified key milestones. Project steering committee to have oversight of project progress. Performance targets to be written into the evaluation contract. All interviews to be conducted in confidence by the evaluators, at a time and in a location where staff are able to talk openly with the evaluator (including phone interviews). Methodology for ensuring that staffs are unable to be identified to be outlined by the evaluator(s) to staff prior to their participation in interviews. Staff to retain the right to withdraw their consent at any stage during the evaluation. All data to be de‐ identified for reporting purposes and “composite” quotes (which cannot be attributed to any individual) to be used as examples, where relevant. Careful preparation of all documentation and evidence for review by a Human Research Ethics Committee. Desktop activities (e.g. literature search, review of previous Volunteer Engagement and Client Satisfaction surveys, plus data collection templates) can be completed while ethics process is completed (if a delay in approval occurs). Scaling back of the number of interviews and focus groups to be conducted for the evaluation may be required if a significant delay occurs.
7.2 Limitations Potential Limitation
Description
Program logic outcome “ Educational participation of school aged children is increased” not included in the evaluation scope
There is recognition that this outcome is not necessarily reflective of what the current program activities can achieve, or contribute to achieving. This will need to be considered as part of the future program recommendations.
Financial constraints
May limit the extent of the evaluation and key stakeholder involvement
Sample may not be representative of the diverse range of program locations, participants, and beneficiaries and communities
May limit or bias the feedback received / evaluation outcomes
Vulnerable participants
Limited literacy / educational attainment levels may impact on some participants’ ability to respond to or participate in written evaluation activities.
Sample size
Time and funding constraints are likely to limit the sample size available for the purpose of this evaluation, which may result in under‐representation of particular groups. (If this occurs then the final report should document this limitation and findings may be “qualified” as a result).
Bias
The schools we have stronger relationships with are most likely
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8. Expressions of Interest 8.1 Due Date Expressions of Interest addressing the Brief should be forwarded to Mohita Roman
[email protected]. Expressions of Interest must be received by 5pm (Eastern Daylight Time) on 8 October 2015. Proposals submitted after this time will not be accepted unless prior permission has been given in writing. Hard copy/facsimile proposals will not be accepted. 8.2 Contact Person for Further Information For further information regarding this call for expressions of interest please contact: Helen Barnard National Coordinator Service Support (08) 8100 4571 or 0466 549 059
[email protected] 8.3 Response format In responding to this call for expressions of interest evaluators are to outline:
An evaluation methodology which includes the data collection tools and approaches that the evaluator proposes to use in collecting data.
Identifying information
Name of Legal Entity ACN (if a company) Registered address or address of principal place of business Business Name ABN Contact Person details
Proposed timeline for the evaluation
A detailed budget for the proposal including Estimated time for each person involved in the evaluation Per day costs for each person involved in the evaluation Travel costs for each trip that is proposed as part of the evaluation A statement of the insurance coverage that is provided
For each member of the evaluation project team a table outlining their
o o o o o
o o o o
o o o o o
Name Role or title Qualifications Description of what this researcher will do in this evaluation Brief summary of relevant experience.
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