| The aim of the project was to develop parenting skills, raise confidence and awareness among parents, to share knowledge and skills, and give parents support by means of individual and group exercises using researched based information and advice.
Following the success of the pilot, there was a decision by Southern Education & Library Board (SELB) and the Southern Health & Social Services Board (SHSSB) to jointly employ a DELTA Development Officer in 1995. Since then the project has expanded and developed through European Union (EU) Peace & Reconciliation Childhood Fund Priority 2 Measure 5, “Investing in Childcare”, Department of Education funding through SELB, grants from SHSSB and Sure Start funding in specific areas.
Over 150 Early Years’ Programmes, Upper Primary and Post Primary Programmes are delivered in the Southern area annually. These include tailor-made programmes for parents of children with special educational needs, and programmes for parents from ethnic minority groups. Three Project Staff are employed to cover Sure Start Project Areas namely Clogher Valley, Blossom in Portadown and Orana in Newry and these staff members also work with individual parents and families. In addition the Delta Project offers Open College accredited courses and a Baby Sitting Course to Young People.
The Project has continuously self-evaluated since its inception. There have been thousands of parental and promoters’ evaluations. Anecdotal evidence and feedback from the participants during DELTA programmes has been very positive. However it was felt that an independent organisational evaluation should be commissioned. DELTA took the opportunity to ask Community Evaluation Northern Ireland (CENI) to undertake the evaluation. On behalf of the DELTA Project we would like to thank all the parents, school staff, the evaluators, the evaluation reference group and other participants who took part in this evaluation.
Dr Norman Gillespie and Dr Edel McClean are CENI evaluators who worked on the DELTA evaluation. CENI is an independent not for profit organisation which was established in 1995 to provide evaluation services. It is a unique organisation committed to promoting a better understanding and use of evaluation. CENI aims to facilitate organisations to use evaluation to assess their achievements and to assist them in planning and managing their activities.
Finally we would like to take this opportunity to commend the DELTA Project for “making a significant contribution to promoting social cohesion through developing good practice in partnership working and enabling parents to become more positive in their attitudes to education, social services, health and wellbeing and civic responsibilities. In addition it has contributed to building a sense of community and development of social capital through improving parents’ relationships with other parents and linkages between parents, schools and the wider community”.
(CENI Evaluation ‘04)
Tony Rodgers ................Walter Burke
SHSSB ..........................SELB
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