CashBack For Communities Phase Four Impact Evaluation

Programme development There have been four broad phases of CashBack activity. 1 The first phase (from 2008 to 2011) was an early stage where approaches to using proceeds of crime to have positive impacts for young people and communities were developed and established.

At the end of the first phase - in 2011 - the Scottish Government’s Safer Communities Division carried out a review of the CashBack programme and changes were made to strengthen programme management and delivery. These changes included the appointment of an external delivery partner to develop consistent processes, support projects in delivering and

measuring their outcomes, and support monitoring, evaluation and reporting at project and programme level. Since July 2012, this role has been undertaken by Inspiring Scotland 2 . 2 The second phase of activity ran from 2011/12 to 2013/14, and involved 14 project partners, reducing to 13 partners by the end of Phase two. Phase two was evaluated in May 2014. There was a strong focus on mass participation activity. The evaluation made a series of recommendations relating to the processes within the programme. It also highlighted positive initial steps towards understanding the outcomes and impact of the programme. 3 The third phase of activity ran from April 2014 to March 2017. Phase three involved 14 project partners. Ten of the project partners were also involved in phase two, and four were new for phase three. Phase three was strongly focused on outcomes and impact on young people, across the themes of employability, sport, youth work, culture and facilities. An evaluation of phase three is available here. 4 The fourth phase of activity ran from April 2017 to March 2020. It involved 17 project partners, six of whom were new to the programme. Phase four involved a strong focus on socio- economic deprivation, and targeted activity to support the most disadvantaged young people. This report sets out findings from an evaluation of phase four.

2 The Scottish Government has tendered this role on a regular basis and applied a thorough selection process.

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