We have recently concluded an evaluation of the NCEL CAMHS Provider Collaborative Small Grants programme led by East London NHS Foundation Trust. The first round of this programme has involved the distribution of £1.5M funding to 47 different VCSE organisations, focused on tackling inequalities in mental health support for children and young people, as well as reducing the need for hospital admission. The funded organisations ranged from small volunteer-led groups to more established and larger charities. Funded projects included sports, arts, counselling, group workshops and mentoring.
In order to fully capture the impact of the programme, we engaged with funded organisations initially to develop the outcomes framework and consult on data collection and research methods. We utilised primary and secondary research, both quantitative and qualitative, from provider monitoring data/questionnaires through to direct beneficiary engagement leading and facilitating interviews and focus groups. Through these approaches we have been able to demonstrate:
- The impact achieved for individuals and VCSE organisations
- Critical Success factors that enabled the impact
- Grant process findings and recommendations
- Systems impact and learning
The findings are now being used to feed into development of further rounds of the fund to enhance processes and maximise impact, as well as being shared with other NHS collaboratives to support their development of grant funding programmes for VCSE organisations.