d2 Digital by design Ltd, use digital technology to help ordinary people achieve wonderful things – integrating digital with healthcare and education. Everything they do is fundamentally aimed at changing behaviour or reinforcing positive behaviour, using learning theory, technology and campaigns.
What CSAIF funded: d2 Digital was awarded £132,248 (including £10,000 for evaluation) to build and trial a peer mentoring function into an existing digital platform which supports behaviour change in those who aim to be alcohol free or have controlled alcohol use. The platform provides regular text messages of encouragement for clients to stick to their recovery plans and goals. Depending on their response to the text message, the client either receives a personalised motivational reply or a call from a volunteer, peer mentor or professional.
The grant allowed the team to support 240 service users across East Lancashire and West Kent by mobilising a key team of volunteers, peer mentors and staff who managed the platform. 40 peer mentors were recruited and trained on the system during the period of the grant. View the full impact evaluation.
Level on Standards: Level 2- they have captured data that shows positive change, but cannot confirm they caused this.
Evaluator: The RSA
Aim: To demonstrate that a SMS Digital Behaviour Change System (Evie) can remotely support an individual’s potential for achieving longer term change and support reduced re-referrals to structured services; and, examine the learning from implementation to provide commissioners and service providers a guide on successful implementation of any digital intervention.
Key findings:
Methodology:
Why is it a Level 2 Evaluation?
Practical challenges in the evaluation have led to the level 2 validation being dependent upon being seen in combination with the earlier, more robust evaluation of a similar (without social action) version of the programme. In addition, D2D is very transparent about the changes to the evaluation and their causes and has done a good job of making the best of the data that could still be collected and of making links between the qualitative and limited quantitative data.
Progress: The original evaluation plan progressed through a number of changes from the outset, with a revised evaluation plan signed off in the middle of the project. This was due to several factors, primarily as the original plans for quantitative methods of evaluation were not possible as the project progressed.
Lessons learned:
Next steps: