Project | Evaluation of mental health and wellbeing interventions with small cohorts

TASO has selected and funded two universities to participate in a project that will evaluate student mental health and wellbeing interventions they deliver to small cohorts.

TASO has also commissioned Bath Social & Development Research Ltd and Tharani Learning and Research as the independent evaluators on the project.

The evaluators will work with the providers to explore the impact of their interventions using theory based evaluation methods, with the intention of providing robust evidence on mental health and wellbeing interventions delivered in the higher education sector to small cohorts of students.

The interventions

Leeds Trinity University (LTU) – are delivering Coaching the GapA coaching programme to support and promote positive wellbeing for at risk Black, Asian and ethnic minority students at LTU. Coaching is delivered by Flourished Minds, an organisation that works with students to navigate issues they face and develop tools and skills to address challenges.

St Mary’s University (SMU), Twickenham – are delivering The Boundary Spanner Project.The project aims to support the mental wellbeing of students from widening participation (WP) groups by running two initiatives, targeting different WP groups. Popular activities are used as a ‘hook’ to encourage students to attend the session, where they can then meet informally with wellbeing staff, academic staff and other students. The project is made up of two initiatives, Reprezent Health and Hang out and paint. Reprezent Health targets males from diverse ethnic backgrounds, and males who commute from low-income areas studying sports courses. Sessions are run twice a week in the university resistance training suite during term time and are scheduled after core. Hang out and Paint is an open session for all students and staff to attend. Sessions run weekly and last for two hours, allowing participants to drop in at any point during this period. Various creative activities are put on including watercolour on canvas, miniature painting and dexterity-based crafting.

The final reports will be published in autumn 2025.