Impact of Lifelong Links

Lifelong Links is rebuilding relationships and reconnecting children and young people in care with loved ones

The report into the three year evaluation of Lifelong Links

Some of the key findings of the Lifelong Links evaluation include:

• Increase in family and friends connections. On average children and young people increased their social networks from seven to 26 people.
• 78% children and young people felt an improved sense of identity.
• Statistically significant positive impact on young people remaining in their placement following Lifelong Links. 74% children and young people remained in their placement after Lifelong Links compared with 41% of a comparator group.
• Value for money: Cost benefit analysis showed a return on investment of monetisable outcomes is £1.02 for every £1 spent.

Family Rights Group also produce a quarterly impact report into Lifelong Links based on local authority reports and case studies. The following is a summary of our findings to date:

• 84% of children who asked are now reconnected with their wider family networks.
• 94% of children who asked are seeing carers, former professionals and other important people including old school friends and godparents.
• Almost one fifth of children wanted to find out more about their family history and where they came from. One Lifelong Links coordinator was able to trace one young person’s family tree back to the 1850’s.
• 11% of children had specific requests which were important to them, such as if their old pet was still alive, a photograph of themselves with their siblings, a plan for when they left care or to receive birthday cards. In all cases the Lifelong Links coordinator was successful, apart from one. That was when a young person wanted to return to a previous placement.

You can download the latest impact report here.