St Helens Evaluation

St Helens home support project is a four-year programme funded by the Big Lottery Fund scheduled to end in 2019. It builds on care at home services and the intergenerational Dawn Patrol project that BRC have delivered in the St Helens Merseyside area over a number of years.

It is hoped the provision of these services will lead to 4 outcomes

• Older people living in St Helens have improved health and well-being;
• Older people living in St Helens are more able to live at home independently;
• Older people living in St Helens are less socially isolated; and
• Young people living in St Helens will have an improved understanding of the issues faced by older people.

Home support is a partnership currently consisting of the British Red Cross (BRC) and the foundation independent living trust (FILT). This partnership also previously included Bridgwater Community Healthcare NHS Trust (Bridgwater).

It was initially envisioned that the project would have volunteers playing a significant role in delivery but this has proven challenging for a range of reasons leading to a redesign to have more support delivered by staff. They have also been changes in the expected partners of the project (Bridgwater involvement ending). This shifting environment has required a highly adaptive approach.

This evaluation will use a mix of pre-existing data and new information to create a report to support improving future delivery of similar services, and demonstrate the value of the services to both current and potential funders.