5
Evaluation aims
Evaluation of the service was carried out
independently by Bangor University; the bulk of this
final report includes Dr Gill Windle and Dr Jennifer
Roberts findings.
The aims of Cadwyn Môn’s evaluation were to
explore; a) the extent to which the Cadwyn Môn
service made changes to well-being, loneliness,
isolation and participation in activities for the
individuals, and; b) the experiences of the volunteers
who were delivering the project to individuals.
Methods
Coordinators enlist volunteers who can mentor and
support individuals. Recruitment and selection is
in line with Age Cymru Gwynedd a Môn’s policies
and procedures, training needs are identified and
monitoring and supervision systems are put in place
to support the volunteer team. Volunteer training
includes self-confidence, confidentiality, resilience,
elder abuse awareness, negotiating and influencing
and motivation techniques.
The service
The service was open to all people over the age of 50
living on Anglesey who are at risk of social isolation
and loneliness. The risk may have been exacerbated
through their experience of physical disabilities,
mental health problems, or significant changes in
their current circumstances such as bereavement
and retirement. The project puts in place an official
referral system that allows organisations and
agencies that come into contact with older people
to refer individuals to the Cadwyn Môn project.
Additionally, referrals can also be made by friends
and relatives and individuals themselves.
Working with Age Well and the other centres and
clubs, older people are able to access the appropriate
advice and support to help overcome psychological
and practical barriers, in order to empower and
enable them to become a valuable member of their
local community.
The volunteer offers companionship and practical as
well as the psychological support needed to enable
that individual to be more active.
If individuals do not require the assistance of a
volunteer or a 10-15 week befriending programme
they are referred directly to the Cadwyn Môn
friendship club.
Evaluation framework
The research team at Bangor University initially
worked with the Cadwyn Môn team to identify the
anticipated outcomes and then designed a Directory
of Measure to be administered by the Coordinators
both before (baseline) and after (follow up) the
individual receives the service. In addition to the
Directory of Measure, a ‘home visit’ form is completed
by the Coordinator and the individual upon first
meeting, and includes information about referrals,
the type of support required, medical conditions,
recent life changes and a risk assessment.
Individuals are each given a unique number, and
their names and any other identifying information,
are removed from all forms and questionnaires.
The anonymised documents are then sent, either in
person, or by recorded delivery, to the research team
in Bangor University.
Referrals
By the end of October 2016, the total number of
individuals referred to Cadwyn Môn was 686. The
total number of individuals who received the Cadwyn
Môn befriending programme was 535. Of these, 116
were deemed unsuitable for the programme and
were given helpful information or referred on to one
of Cadwyn Môn’s partners, 114 were referred directly
to the Cadwyn Môn club.
The most common mode of referral is by family
members, and self-referral is frequent too. Individuals
were also often referred by services such as social
services, mental health teams, physiotherapy
department and the memory clinic.
Monitoring &
evaluation
