GEM Interim Monitoring and Evaluation Report

GEM is a social inclusion programme aimed at moving a range of disadvantaged groups closer to the labour market, training and education. Since October 2016 the programme has engaged 1745 participants, of which 629 have moved into paid employment and 281 into education and training. The on-going monitoring and evaluation has revealed a range of positive and often life changing outcomes for the vast majority of participants, most notably in improving their personal and motivational attributes and through removing barriers to the provision of advice and support. The Monitoring and Evaluation framework for GEM encompasses both an outcomes (summative) and process (formative) evaluation. The summative evaluation examines the outcomes and impact of the project with the aim of determining overall effectiveness. The formative evaluation focuses on learning around processes linked to planning, management and delivery of the project, and the extent to which planned activities are carried out. These are incorporated in a cyclical approach through which data are continuously gathered, analysed and disseminated

GEM Interim Monitoring and Evaluation Report

This report presents an update of the evaluation findings in respect of the process evaluation and participant data obtained via the evaluation survey1. The overall Monitoring and Evaluation2 framework for GEM encompasses both a process (formative) and outcomes (summative) evaluation. The process evaluation focuses on processes linked to planning, management and delivery of the project, and extent to which planned activities are carried out. The summative evaluation examines the outcomes and impact of the project with the aim of determining overall effectiveness. These are incorporated in a cyclical approach through which data are continuously gathered, analysed and disseminate

GEM Interim Monitoring and Evaluation Summary Report

Executive Summary GEM is a social inclusion programme aimed at moving a range of disadvantaged groups closer to the labour market, training and education. Since October 2016 the programme has engaged 1668 participants, of which 429 have moved into paid employment and 148 into education and training. However, the on-going monitoring and evaluation has revealed a range of positive and often life changing outcomes for the vast majority of participants, most notably in improving their personal and motivational attributes and through removing barriers to the provision of advice and support. In building on previous annual interim evaluation reports, this message of profound impact is strengthened and deepened as the evaluation has sought to reach out to the extremities of its harder to reach participant cohort, its partnership and to those on the front line of programme delivery, who have faced significant challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020. The network of delivery partner organisations and especially the Navigator Developers (NDs) has developed well through new methods and systems of sharing of information, expertise and resources through the pandemic, including the celebrated #GEMonline. Many NDs reported that the network has become very close and even more collaborative, which has not gone unnoticed by participants who have referred to feeling part of the GEM ‘community’ in the county. This in part reflects GEMs provision of flexibility and autonomy to its partners, which has increased the capacity to establish responsive and creative approaches

Insights into the GEM Journey. Final Summary Monitoring and Evaluation Report to Gloucestershire Gateway Trust and Gloucestershire County Council.

Going the Extra Mile — or GEM — is a social inclusion programme that has sought to move those who are vulnerable, disadvantaged or excluded from the mainstream economy and society in Gloucestershire closer to employment, training and education. With over 2,000 participants recruited to GEM over the course of the six—year programme, over 800 have gone on to find employment or self—employment, while over 300 have started or returned to education or have undertaken training

Physical and Cultural Activity for Life Skills Development - Comparative Report

Life skills are defined as psychosocial abilities for adaptive and positive behaviour that enable individuals to deal effectively with the demands and challenges of everyday life. Life skills can be fostered and are fundamental for a person’s progression in life, both personal and professional. Some of those skills are creativity, critical thinking, problem-solving, effective communication and collaboration skills, cultivation of responsibility, development of healthy relationships and decision- making. These skills can be acquired through life experience but can be further developed through constant training and engagement. Life skills are particularly important for adolescents and young people. Adolescents and young people leave behind the dependence and the safety that childhood is associated with and enter adulthood with all its opportunities and freedoms but also with all its insecurities and anxieties. Life skills can help adolescents and young people strengthen their self-confidence, interpersonal skills, learn how to use them in assessing knowledge, use resources for their benefit, and make the proper decisions in order to promote their wellbeing2. This way life skills can help young people anticipate with all the difficulties that might occur in adulthood and be involved in the society. In other words, life skills can equip young people with all the necessary qualities in order to become resilient individuals and active citizens. The University of Gloucestershire (UK), Play Gloucestershire (UK), Rogers Személyközpontú Oktatásért Alapítvány (HU), KENTRO MERIMNAS OIKOGENEIAS KAI PAIDIOU(GR), CESIE (IT) and CLAVIS sprog & competence (DK) are implementing the 2 year Erasmus+ project entitled: PAClife – Physical and Cultural Activity for Life Skills Development (2020-2021). The project aims to support disadvantaged and migrant young people in building resilience through acquiring and developing life skills and key competences by participating in a programme of physical and cultural activity. This report presents the findings of a desk-based comparison of domestic projects that will inform the future development of the PAClife training tool to low-skilled/low qualified migrant and disadvantaged young people

Going the Extra Mile (GEM): Interim Monitoring and Evaluation Report

The Monitoring and Evaluation framework for GEM encompasses both an outcomes (summative) and process (formative) evaluation. The summative evaluation examines the outcomes and impact of the project with the aim of determining overall effectiveness. The formative evaluation focuses on processes linked to planning, management and delivery of the project, and extent to which planned activities are carried out. These are incorporated in a cyclical approach through which data are continuously gathered, analysed and disseminated

Physical and Cultural Activity for Life Skills Development - Comparative Report

Life skills are defined as psychosocial abilities for adaptive and positive behaviour that enable individuals to deal effectively with the demands and challenges of everyday life. Life skills can be fostered and are fundamental for a person’s progression in life, both personal and professional. Some of those skills are creativity, critical thinking, problem-solving, effective communication and collaboration skills, cultivation of responsibility, development of healthy relationships and decision- making. These skills can be acquired through life experience but can be further developed through constant training and engagement. Life skills are particularly important for adolescents and young people. Adolescents and young people leave behind the dependence and the safety that childhood is associated with and enter adulthood with all its opportunities and freedoms but also with all its insecurities and anxieties. Life skills can help adolescents and young people strengthen their self-confidence, interpersonal skills, learn how to use them in assessing knowledge, use resources for their benefit, and make the proper decisions in order to promote their wellbeing2. This way life skills can help young people anticipate with all the difficulties that might occur in adulthood and be involved in the society. In other words, life skills can equip young people with all the necessary qualities in order to become resilient individuals and active citizens. The University of Gloucestershire (UK), Play Gloucestershire (UK), Rogers Személyközpontú Oktatásért Alapítvány (HU), KENTRO MERIMNAS OIKOGENEIAS KAI PAIDIOU(GR), CESIE (IT) and CLAVIS sprog & competence (DK) are implementing the 2 year Erasmus+ project entitled: PAClife – Physical and Cultural Activity for Life Skills Development (2020-2021). The project aims to support disadvantaged and migrant young people in building resilience through acquiring and developing life skills and key competences by participating in a programme of physical and cultural activity. This report presents the findings of a desk-based comparison of domestic projects that will inform the future development of the PAClife training tool to low-skilled/low qualified migrant and disadvantaged young people

Convalescent plasma in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 (RECOVERY): a randomised controlled, open-label, platform trial

SummaryBackground Azithromycin has been proposed as a treatment for COVID-19 on the basis of its immunomodulatoryactions. We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of azithromycin in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19.Methods In this randomised, controlled, open-label, adaptive platform trial (Randomised Evaluation of COVID-19Therapy [RECOVERY]), several possible treatments were compared with usual care in patients admitted to hospitalwith COVID-19 in the UK. The trial is underway at 176 hospitals in the UK. Eligible and consenting patients wererandomly allocated to either usual standard of care alone or usual standard of care plus azithromycin 500 mg once perday by mouth or intravenously for 10 days or until discharge (or allocation to one of the other RECOVERY treatmentgroups). Patients were assigned via web-based simple (unstratified) randomisation with allocation concealment andwere twice as likely to be randomly assigned to usual care than to any of the active treatment groups. Participants andlocal study staff were not masked to the allocated treatment, but all others involved in the trial were masked to theoutcome data during the trial. The primary outcome was 28-day all-cause mortality, assessed in the intention-to-treatpopulation. The trial is registered with ISRCTN, 50189673, and ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04381936.Findings Between April 7 and Nov 27, 2020, of 16 442 patients enrolled in the RECOVERY trial, 9433 (57%) wereeligible and 7763 were included in the assessment of azithromycin. The mean age of these study participants was65·3 years (SD 15·7) and approximately a third were women (2944 [38%] of 7763). 2582 patients were randomlyallocated to receive azithromycin and 5181 patients were randomly allocated to usual care alone. Overall,561 (22%) patients allocated to azithromycin and 1162 (22%) patients allocated to usual care died within 28 days(rate ratio 0·97, 95% CI 0·87–1·07; p=0·50). No significant difference was seen in duration of hospital stay (median10 days [IQR 5 to >28] vs 11 days [5 to >28]) or the proportion of patients discharged from hospital alive within 28 days(rate ratio 1·04, 95% CI 0·98–1·10; p=0·19). Among those not on invasive mechanical ventilation at baseline, nosignificant difference was seen in the proportion meeting the composite endpoint of invasive mechanical ventilationor death (risk ratio 0·95, 95% CI 0·87–1·03; p=0·24).Interpretation In patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19, azithromycin did not improve survival or otherprespecified clinical outcomes. Azithromycin use in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 should be restrictedto patients in whom there is a clear antimicrobial indication

The Effect of the Amount and Timing of Folic Acid Supplementation During the Life Course on the Epigenetic Regulation of Cancer Determining Genes

<p>Mandatory Folic Acid (FA) fortification of staple foods<br>in a number of countries and periconceptional supplementation has led to increased levels of FA intake. There is ongoing controversy over the effect of FA supplementation on cancer risk, with high levels of FA (≥400ug/day) associated with an increased risk of breast cancer. FA is thought to infer cancer risk through modulation of the epigenome. Here, we investigated whether variations in FA intake<br>during adulthood induced persistent changes in the<br>expression of the tumour suppressor gene Brca1 and<br>the pluripotency gene Oct-4, which play key roles in<br>DNA repair and cellular differentiation.</p