Beacon Strategies 2021 Projects: a year in review
2021 has been an opportunity for the sector to learn, grow and settle into new ways of working. This year we’ve met and worked alongside a number of new client partners and continued working with many of our existing client partners.
For Beacon Strategies, this year has allowed our team to grow in size with three new team members joining us in the Brisbane office and a new team and office opening in Northern Queensland.
To acknowledge another successful year (in still somewhat turbulent times), we would like to thank the wonderful client partners we’ve been able to work with and reflect on the impactful projects we’ve had the privilege of working on this year.
Without further ado here are the clients and projects we worked on this year:
Accoras
Evaluation of a psychosocial support service for children and young people in Logan and Beaudesert
Beacon Strategies was engaged as an independent partner to best inform future funding and service delivery decisions for the Expansion Pilot of the National Psychosocial Support Measure (Child and Adolescent).
Act for Kids
Our team supported a review and refresh of the organisation’s purpose and mission to ensure it aligns with the perspectives of various stakeholders, reflects the services and impact of the organisation, and offers a more positive and aspirational focus.
Beacon Strategies supported Act for Kids with an external evaluation of the Flourish Education program, a school-based therapeutic service funded by Brisbane North PHN that aims to support vulnerable students in the Moreton Bay North region.
Organisational Impact Framework
Based on a recommendation arising from the project, the Act For Kids organisational impact measurement and reporting framework will align with their recently refreshed purpose statement.
Brisbane North PHN
Our team provided backbone support to a project that aims to develop a clear and agreed system of care pathways for five priority mental health conditions in the Brisbane North region.
Bribie Island After-Hours Pilot Project
Beacon Strategies was commissioned to run stakeholder engagements that will inform a primary care model for after-hours service delivery.
Evaluation of Integrated Mental Health Hubs
Beacon Strategies was engaged to undertake an external evaluation of the three Integrated Mental Health Service Hubs to demonstrate the outcomes and process learnings at a regional level.
Brisbane South PHN
Beacon Strategies supported Brisbane South PHN to conduct a Health Needs Assessment for the Brisbane South region. The HNA identifies areas of acute health and service needs and proposes strategies to meet these needs within the community.
Community Gateway
Trauma Counselling and Emergency Relief Evaluations
Beacon Strategies ran an evaluation of two of the Community Gateway programs, Trauma Counselling and Emergency Relief and provided an evaluation reporting product that guides the improvement of each program into the future.
COORDINARE (South Eastern NSW PHN)
This project developed a model of social prescribing that aims to increase social connectedness and utilisation of non-clinical services and social supports for those living with chronic health conditions in South Eastern NSW.
Specialist Access in the Community
Beacon Strategies facilitated a co-design process to develop a sustainable and scalable shared care model that increases access to specialist care in the community.
The purpose of the Care Coordination Co-design Project was to rapidly research, co-design and frame a commissioning intent for a care coordination model of care for people with chronic and complex health conditions.
Foodbank
Foodbank Queensland engaged Beacon Strategies to map the ‘current’ member journey, explore the experience from the perspective of members and identify opportunities for further improvement
Beacon Strategies supported Foodbank Queensland to develop and implement a Regional Expansion Strategy to deliver on their mission of “fighting hunger by sourcing food for people in need” with genuine reach across the state
Footprints in Brisbane
Footprints in Brisbane engaged Beacon Strategies to provide external support with their latest strategic planning process.
Gold Coast PHN
Beacon Strategies was engaged by Wesley Mission Queensland and Gold Coast PHN to co-design a service model that aimed to address situational distress in the Gold Coast community, as part of the region’s broader suicide prevention efforts.
Psychological Services Program Review
The purpose of this project was to undertake a review of Gold Coast PHN’s Psychological Services Program (PSP) with the view to commission a new model that better provides short-term, structured psychological therapies to meet the needs of the community.
Grace Homestead
Strategy Support
Grace Homestead engaged Beacon Strategies to develop a suite of planning documents to guide the efforts of Grace Homestead in securing sustainable funding sources to grow their impact into the future.
Northern Queensland PHN
Cairns and Hinterland Suicide Prevention Community Action Plan
Beacon Strategies refined, finalised and is now implementing the Cairns and Hinterland Suicide Prevention Community Action Plan - a community and sector endorsed path forward for coordinated suicide prevention activities across the region.
Torres and Cape Suicide Prevention Community Action Plan
Following on from the Cairns and Hinterland SPCAP, Beacon Strategies has now been engaged by NQPHN to develop a SPCAP for the Torres and Cape region.
Queensland Health
Carer Support for Individuals Experiencing a Suicidal Crisis
Queensland Health commissioned Wesley Mission Queensland, in partnership with Beacon Strategies and Roses In The Ocean, to develop, test and evaluate a suicide prevention carer support program based on the Gold Coast.
Roses in the Ocean
Alternatives to Emergency Departments
As part of the NSW Ministry of Health’s Towards Zero Suicides initiatives, Beacon Strategies was engaged to support Roses in the Ocean to facilitate local co-design processes for twenty new Alternatives to EDs / Safe Spaces services in each of the local health districts (LHDs) across NSW.
StandBy - Support After Suicide
StandBy engaged Beacon Strategies to understand the ‘current state’ of their digital capability, identify potential ‘future state’ enhancements and think strategically about how potential digital products can enhance service delivery.
South Western Sydney PHN
Mental Health Literacy Initiative Co-Design
South Western Sydney PHN engaged Beacon Strategies to deliver the Mental Health Literacy Initiative Co-design Project to determine mental health literacy needs and potential activities to be implemented by SWSPHN tailored to the South Western Sydney community.
Wesley Mission Queensland
Marcus Mission Evaluation Support
Beacon Strategies was engaged by Wesley Mission Queensland to provide external support for an evaluation of the volunteer mentor role component of the Marcus Mission program.
Implementing a Mental Health Practice Framework
Our project approach involves working with three selected WMQ program areas to each develop a change management plan outlining specific activities to embed the framework’s actions in their everyday practice.
Boss Boxing Program Evaluation
Wesley Mission Queensland has engaged Beacon Strategies to undertake a short, targeted evaluation of The Boss Boxing (TBB), an Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander boxing gym based in Zillmere, to help document the program model and demonstrate its outcomes.
Whitsunday Counselling and Support
Development of an Organisational Strategic Plan
The purpose of the project is to deliver an insightful strategic planning process that results in the development of a purposeful and meaningful organisational strategic plan for Whitsunday Counselling and Support.
We are very grateful for the diversity of organisations we have been able to work with this year including a large number of not-for-profit organisations and Primary Health Networks. Beacon Strategies looks forward to tackling the work we have planned for 2022 but for now, we’re taking some time to slow down and enjoy the holiday break.
See you all in the new year.