Evaluation of Resilient Kids Program for Healthy North Coast
Status: Ongoing — to be completed in 2026
Client: Healthy North Coast
In March 2022, the Northern Rivers region of NSW experienced floods that affected a number of communities, including an estimated 85,000 school-aged children across 180 schools.
Given the known impact of natural disasters on the mental health of children and young people, the North Coast Primary Health Network, known as Healthy North Coast (HNC), has launched 'Resilient Kids' — a comprehensive program focused on early intervention mental health support for flood-affected school-aged children and their families, supported by $10 million in funding from the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).
HNC has engaged Beacon Strategies as the evaluation partner of Resilient Kids over three years, commencing in mid-2023 through to mid-2026.
Approach
Our engagement as evaluation partner of this multi-year, multi-site evaluation involves both formative and impact evaluation work using a developmental approach focused on learning and sharing.
We will work closely HNC and its contracted service providers to:
engage with providers to build a foundational understanding in evaluation concepts, and analysis of the context and evidence base that the Resilient Kids program sits within
design a monitoring, evaluation and learning framework that outlines the Resilient Kids program, the scope of the evaluation and the data collection and analysis methods
collect high quality data using mixed methods such as outcome measurement tools, qualitative insights and experiences, and community-level assessments of resilience relating to children and young people
facilitate quarterly learning loops with key program delivery partners using a data-driven approach and focus on continually refining and adapting the program's design to meet the needs of communities
deliver comprehensive evaluation reporting at key milestones along the way, covering both formative and impact findings.
Project outcomes
As well as providing key stakeholders with a comprehensive understanding of the program's impact, our evaluation will aim to contribute to the evidence base and share findings/learnings relating to improving mental health of children and young people in a disaster resilience context.
As of January 2024, we are finalising the monitoring, evaluation and learning framework and obtaining ethics approval before we transition into the ongoing data collection and monitoring phase for the remainder of 2024.
Are you looking for support for your next program evaluation? Beacon Strategies can help! We have strong capability and a diverse portfolio of previous projects in program evaluation. Head to our evaluation services page to check out more of our projects or catch up on news and insights from our blog.
