Participants at all Pathways levels, and particularly at Level 3, have been enabled to have new or increased access to key influencers and decision makers, from MLAs and other elected representatives to senior officials in statutory organisations, who are concerned with policy decisions and the investment of public funds. There are indications that there have been positive effects in two directions. The contact and interaction has aided participant understanding of the realities around policy and decision making processes while the elected representatives and officials have had the opportunity to engage with Pathways to Health participants in the context of their learning experience on the programme, and better understand their perspectives. Pathways to Health has provided a platform for discussion on core issues and contributors and guests have been encouraged to understand participants’ experiences and vice versa. 8.1.9 Growth of a learning community With Pathways to Health, CDHN has been further growing and consolidating its learning community in relation to community development and health. New connections have been forged that further enhance and extend the networking platform that CDHN represents and this has been underpinned by the learning which has been facilitated through the Pathways to Health programme. There is scope to support this activity further, especially for a membership organisation and while CDHN is already taking steps to explore new mechanisms, prioritising this activity forms one of the key evaluation recommendations below. 8.1.10 Sustainability of the Pathways to Health approach CDHN is seizing the challenge of protecting the role in capacity building and learning that Pathways to Health has enabled the organisation to further expand. As Pathways has progressed, new programme have been developed in response to observed and emerging needs and demands. These new offers have been in the areas of supporting community health champions, group work skills, and and co-design. are very significant known and latent needs in relation to each of these areas across the workforce and volunteer base active in community development and health. As Pathways to Health has demonstrated, these needs exist within community and voluntary sector organisations and statutory organisations, whether these organisations are explicitly concerned with health or with one or other of the recognised health determinants. As CDHN staff skills and confidence have developed over the Pathways to Health project lifetime, so too has their capacity to offer out a wider service in terms of facilitation, training design and delivery and other related consultancy work.
Participants at all Pathways levels, and particularly at Level 3, have been enabled to have new or increased access to key influencers and decision makers, from MLAs and other elected representatives to senior officials in statutory organisations, who are concerned with policy decisions and the investment of public funds. There are indications that there have been positive effects in two directions. The contact and interaction has aided participant understanding of the realities around policy and decision making processes while the elected representatives and officials have had the opportunity to engage with Pathways to Health participants in the context of their learning experience on the programme, and better understand their perspectives. Pathways to Health has provided a platform for discussion on core issues and contributors and guests have been encouraged to understand participants’ experiences and vice versa. 8.1.9 Growth of a learning community With Pathways to Health, CDHN has been further growing and consolidating its learning community in relation to community development and health. New connections have been forged that further enhance and extend the networking platform that CDHN represents and this has been underpinned by the learning which has been facilitated through the Pathways to Health programme. There is scope to support this activity further, especially for a membership organisation and while CDHN is already taking steps to explore new mechanisms, prioritising this activity forms one of the key evaluation recommendations below. 8.1.10 Sustainability of the Pathways to Health approach CDHN is seizing the challenge of protecting the role in capacity building and learning that Pathways to Health has enabled the organisation to further expand. As Pathways has progressed, new programme have been developed in response to observed and emerging needs and demands. These new offers have been in the areas of supporting community health champions, group work skills, and and co-design. are very significant known and latent needs in relation to each of these areas across the workforce and volunteer base active in community development and health. As Pathways to Health has demonstrated, these needs exist within community and voluntary sector organisations and statutory organisations, whether these organisations are explicitly concerned with health or with one or other of the recognised health determinants. As CDHN staff skills and confidence have developed over the Pathways to Health project lifetime, so too has their capacity to offer out a wider service in terms of facilitation, training design and delivery and other related consultancy work.
Pathways%20to%20Health%20Evaluation%20August%202015.docx