Investigators: Yasmin Harman-Smith, Alanna Sincovich
Project description
Project status: Completed in 2015
Children’s centres were established in South Australia to reduce the impact of social inequality on children’s outcomes. They are generally located in areas of high need to enable the provision of high quality services to children and families who may not otherwise have access to these supports.
Children’s centres are based on a model of integrated practice, bringing together education, health, care, community development activities, and family support services in order to best meet the needs of vulnerable children and families.
In 2012 The Kids Research Institute Australia was engaged to undertake a three year evaluation of South Australian Children’s Centres. The overall aims of the evaluation were to measure the process and impact of the integrated services in Children’s Centres.
Children's centre evaluation report: a report on the measurement of process and impacts (PDF 804KB)
Children's centre impact evaluation: overall three-year evaluation plan (PDF 601KB)
This project was undertaken when Institute researchers Yasmin Harman-Smith and Alanna Sincovich formed part of the Fraser Mustard Centre, a previous collaboration between researchers at The Kids Research Institute Australia and policy makers at the South Australian Department for Education, aimed to improve research translation.
For further information about the project and its findings, contact Yasmin Harman-Smith.
External collaborators: Sally Brinkman (University of South Australia)
Project output
Harman-Smith, Y., Brinkman, S., Gregory, T., Brushe, M., & Herreen, D. (2017). Evaluation of Children’s Centres in South Australia: A report on the measurement of process and impacts. Adelaide, Australia: Department for Education and Child Development.
Brinkman, S., & Harman-Smith, Y. (2013). Children's Centre impact evaluation: Overall three-year evaluation plan. Adelaide, Australia: Department for Education and Child Development.
Funders of the project
Department for Education, South Australia