Project Leader: Jane Lakey
Sponsor: John Lyon's Charity and City Parochial Foundation
Period: October 2001-September 2004
Collaborators: None
Background
The John Lyon's Charity and City Parochial Foundation are funding two projects designed by the organisation Working with Men, which will explore innovative ways of providing support and advice to men in the 19-30 age bracket. These projects will focus on two specific groups. One will be based at the Marylebone Bangladeshi Society and will concentrate on service provision to Bangladeshi men from the local community, while the other will be based at the Ethiopian Advice and Support Centre in Hammersmith and will focus on refugees and asylum seekers who have recently arrived in the UK. PSI has been commissioned to evaluate these projects over a three-year period.
Study Design
The research follows a case study design. Following an initial set-up period involving the researchers, funders, project managers and project workers, the project will mainly be carried out by means of monthly visits to the two projects. Interviews with participants will also be carried out. There will be annual interim reports and a final report for publication at the end of the three-year evaluation period. It is likely that a conference will be held as part of the dissemination process.
Importance of Research
The two initiatives which are being evaluated are innovative and aim to tackle issues of multiple disadvantage and disaffection amongst men aged 19-30, who are excluded from many existing forms of service provision. The evaluation will provide valuable ongoing evaluation of the effectiveness of various areas of the work, which will feed into the development and evolution of the two projects. It will also identify lessons about the most effective ways of working with men in this age group which are applicable to a wide range of statutory and non-statutory bodies.