Building evidence together: A co‑designed, practice‑led evaluation of an integrated family support model
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Authors
Lily Mellor
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Issue Date
06-May-26
Type
Conference Abstract
Language
Keywords
Rapid evaluation , Children and Families
Alternative Title
Abstract
Background
The most recent JSNA data for Ealing (2021) highlights significant inequalities affecting children and families. Rates of ‘children in need' are substantially higher in Ealing (415.2 per 10,000) than the London average (336.7), alongside pronounced pockets of severe deprivation despite the borough's mixed affluence. In 2019, 17.2% of children attending mainstream schools and maintained nurseries lived in the 20% most income deprived areas nationally. Housing insecurity further compounds these inequities, with households in temporary accommodation markedly higher in Ealing (22.4 per 1,000) compared with London (17.2) and England (4.6). These patterns underline the importance of upstream, preventative approaches, including whole family and early intervention models that address the intersecting inequalities shaping health and wellbeing outcomes for Ealing's children.
Objectives
Against this backdrop, Ealing has secured funding to implement the Families First Partnership (FFP), a Department for Education programme supporting major reforms to children's social care. The FFP aims to improve long term wellbeing, reduce health inequalities and strengthen life chances through family stability, strong kinship networks and safer environments. It brings together targeted early help, child in need support and multi agency child protection into a single, integrated system, uniting family support workers, social workers and other specialist practitioners around a coherent model of practice.
Stage at submission
Ealing Council is piloting the FFP model in Southall to understand which elements of the approach work well, what requires adaptation, and how practice change influences outcomes for local families. To evaluate this complex, place based intervention, we developed an embedded, developmental methodology focused on understanding causal contribution between practice shifts and outcomes. Working with around 50 practitioners, we co designed a real time learning methodology, generating 30 research questions later refined into eight core lines of inquiry.
Methods
A structured weekly test and learn cycle supports ongoing adaptation. Evidence is gathered through recorded discussions, practitioner learning logs, feedback from children and families, performance data and case audits, organised within an evaluation framework. Through hands on support developing tools, co facilitating sessions and synthesising evidence, we are building evaluative capability across the workforce. The resulting learning blueprint will support wider borough implementation and offer transferable insights for other complex, multi-agency interventions seeking to reduce health inequities.