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Evaluation launched into award winning family support project
12 October 2009
Our Children and Families Enterprise (CAFE) Project has been hailed as a model of good practice in an independent study by Kent University.
The CAFE Project helps families in Kent tackle issues such as child protection, substance misuse, debts and domestic violence.
Funded by Kent Probation Service and Kent County Council, it aims to reduce re-offending by working with the children and families of offenders by maintaining a stable family life and resolving the practical problems encountered when a family member is in custody.
An evaluation into the first six months of the project was carried out by Kent University's European Institute of Social Services. It found that the key strengths of the project lay in its ability to be flexible and work intensively with clients. Partner agencies such as the Probation Service and Social Services - often restrained by heavy caseloads and targets - particularly valued the level of support that CAFE is able to provide.
The researchers recommended that funding for the CAFE project be mainstreamed and that it is promoted at national level as a model of good practice.
The project was originally set up as a six month pilot in 2006 and has since developed into a high profile project helping to rebuild lives and reduce crime. It has helped over 200 families across the Kent region. The current re-offending rate on the project is around 10%.
"CAFE makes an impact on a number of different levels," said Tony Giles, St Giles Trust's Regional Manager for Kent. "It helps individuals, the family unit and wider society as a whole through reducing re-offending both now and in the future. There is a wealth of evidence to suggest that the children of offenders often go on to become offenders themselves if preventative action isn't taken. CAFE tackles these issues head on."
The evaluation was formally launched at an event on Thursday 8 October in Maidstone, Kent. Cllr Peter Parvin, The Mayor of Maidstone, met staff and clients on the project at the event. To download a copy of the evaluation please click here.
The CAFE project won in the Health and Social Care Category of this year's Charity Awards and has been shortlisted in this year's Justice Awards after a nomination by Kent Probation Service.
