Register your interest: Evaluation of mental health and wellbeing interventions with small cohorts (Ref: TASO/36)

Evaluation of mental health and wellbeing interventions with small cohorts

What is it?

TASO will appoint up to five higher education providers to work with TASO and an independent evaluator to test the impact of their mental health and wellbeing interventions using small n methods (often described as theory based evaluation methods). These approaches are particularly well suited for smaller providers and intervention types that only involve a small number of students, and therefore not large enough to warrant a quantitative research or larger impact evaluation design. Example approaches may include Contribution Analysis, Process Tracing, and Realist Evaluation.

Learn more about impact evaluation with small cohorts.

The exact interventions to be evaluated will be decided via an open commissioning process, and TASO will select partner providers based on factors such as feasibility of the intervention for testing. Interventions which could suit the methodology include:

• Interventions targeted at specific student groups such as care-experienced students, black students or disabled students.
• Interventions that support transition out of higher education for students with a mental health difficulty or diagnosis.

Who should apply?

• TASO is seeking to select, and work with, up to five providers who are interested in evaluating their student mental health and wellbeing interventions using small n methods.
• We would like to hear from both small and specialist providers, and larger providers who are implementing targeted mental health interventions with small groups of students.
• Applications involving programmes or interventions that are delivered collaboratively across multiple higher education providers, or with other organisations, are welcome.
• An independent evaluator for the project will be commissioned to support the participating providers on at least one of the projects.

When will the project take place?

• We expect to launch invitations to tender in April 2024.
• The deadline for proposals will be the week commencing 20 May 2024.
• The project is likely to start with a scoping phase in June to September, before moving on to data collection in September/October.
• The length of the project will depend on the interventions being evaluated but could run for one academic year with interim reporting in March 2025 and final reporting in autumn 2025.

Register your interest using the form below.