Prevention and early intervention to improve child wellbeing

Improving child psychosocial outcomes through evidence-based prevention and early intervention
primary care/ primary education getty
This area of work is about how to improve child psychosocial outcomes through evidence-based prevention and early intervention, with an emphasis on developing or adapting interventions and evaluating their effectiveness and implementation. It makes use of a variety of methods, such as evidence reviews, mixed methods randomised controlled trials, process evaluations and rapid cycle testing, and spans a range of subject areas, including anti-social behaviour, bullying, child maltreatment, early childhood development and social-emotional learning. A particular interest is how to achieve impact at scale, hence the focus on (1) innovations in how interventions are developed are tested and (2) knowledge mobilisation.

Live projects

– examining whether combining financial well-being support with parenting support can improve children’s health and development.
– a national programme of work to improve health outcomes in childhood and maternal health across the country, including a cross-project evaluation of implementation support.
Strengthening partnerships through research to tackle male violence against women and girls in Plymouth – this project aims to understand what is important for reducing and preventing Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) in Plymouth.
– a mixed methods investigation of the oral health behaviours, dental experience and access to dental care of children and adolescents in care, and how to improve them.

Completed projects

– integrating the best available international research evidence with insights on current implementation practices in schools in England to inform an update to the Education Endowment Foundation guidance report, ‘Putting Evidence to Work: A School’s Guide to Implementation’.
– a feasibility study and pilot outcomes evaluation of an educational support intervention for young people in care who move placement or school.
– a feasibility study and pilot outcomes evaluation of a group-based mentoring intervention for adolescent boys to prevent youth violence and promote educational outcomes.
– evaluating how best to engage parents in an income maximisation service, and the potential for improving parent-child relations and child health and wellbeing.
– the rapid cycle testing of adaptations to the evidence-based Family Nurse Partnership home visiting programme for young mothers.
– the co-design and rapid cycle testing of adaptations to a mentoring programme for children with behavioural and emotional difficulties.
– the development of an evidence-based toolkit to guide system change in disadvantaged communities and thereby promote the early learning of children in poverty.
– the development of evidence-based guidance for early years settings and schools on how they can best support parents’ engagement in their children’s learning.
– working with Youth Endowment Fund grantees to understand the impact of COVID-19 on young people at risk of being drawn into violent crime and the most effective approaches to engaging with vulnerable young people during the pandemic.

These studies are supported by the .

Publications

2024
  • Green, F., Axford, N., Preece, C., Harris, J., Allen, K., Manzi, S., Mannes, J., Callaghan, L., Berry, V., Hobbs, T., Santana de Lima, E., & Woodburn, A. (2024) . London: Youth Endowment Fund.
  • Melendez-Torres, G. J., Leijten, P., Scott, S., Gardner, F., Axford, N., Santos, M. J. S., Menting, A., Hutchings, J., & Berry, V. (2024). . Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. Published online 24 May. DOI: 10.1037/ccp0000893
  • Moore, D., Proctor, R., Benham-Clarke, S., Gains, H., Melendez-Torres, G. J., Axford N., Rogers, M., Anderson, R., Hall, D., Hawkins, J., Berry, V., Forbes C., & Lloyd, J. (2024) . London: Education Endowment Foundation.
  • Erwin, J., Burns, L., Devalia, U., Witton, R., Shawe, J., Wheat, H., Axford, N., Doughty, J., Kaddour, S., Nelder, A., Brocklehurst, P., & Paisi, M. (2024). . Health Expectations. 27:e13991. doi:10.1111/hex.13991.
  • Booth, J., Erwin, J., Burns, L., Axford, N., Horrell, J., Wheat, H., Witton, R., Shawe, J., Doughty, J., Kaddour, S., Boswell, S., Davalia, U., Nelder., & Paisi, M. (2024). . Dentistry Journal. 12, 38.
  • Erwin, J., Horrell, J., Wheat, H., Axford, N., Burns, L., Booth, J., Witton, R., Shawe, J., Doughty, J., Kaddour, S., Boswell, S., Davalia, U., Nelder, A., & Paisi, M. (2024).. Dentistry Journal, 12, 37.
  • Axford, N., Berry, V., Callaghan, L., Allen, K., Cartwright, L., Bates, R. S., Rybczynska-Bunt, S., Horrell, J. & Liabo, K. (2024) . London: Youth Endowment Fund.
  • Bjornstad, G., Sonthalia, S., Rouse, B., Freeman, L., Hessami, N., Hickman Dunne, J., & Axford, N. (2024) . Campbell Systematic Reviews. Published online 7 January. DOI: 10.1002/cl2.1376.
2023
  • Green, F., Axford, N., Eastmond, N., Berry, V., Mannes, J., Allen, K., Callaghan, L., & Hobbs, T. (2023). . Journal of Prevention. Published online 28 September.
  • Green, F., Axford, N., Harris, J., Preece, C., Mannes, J., Allen, K., Callaghan, L., Berry, V., Santana de Lima, E., & Woodburn, A. (2023) . London: Youth Endowment Fund.
  • Axford, N., & Berry, V. (2023) . Journal of Prevention.
2022
  • Axford, N., Tredinnick-Rowe, J., Rybcycznska-Bunt, S., Burns, L., Green, F., & Thompson, T. (2022) . Children and Youth Services Review, 144, 106713.
  • Berry, V., Melendez-Torres, G. J., Axford, N., Axberg. U., Orobio de Castro, B., Gardner, F., Gaspar, M. F., HandegÃ¥rd, B. H., Hutchings, J., Menting, A., McGilloway, S., Scott, S., & Leijten, P. (2022). . Prevention Science. Epub ahead of print, 25 July,
  • Axford, N., Morpeth, L., Bjornstad, G., Hobbs, T. & Berry, V. (2022) . Children and Youth Services Review, 137, 106469.
  • Axford, N., Berry, V., Lloyd, J. & Wyatt, K. (2022) Evidence-Based Mental Health. Epub ahead of print 13 July. doi:10.1136/ebmental-2022-300500.
2021
  • Simpson, D., Axford, N., Mannes, J., Lily, R., & Hobbs, T. (2021) . Insights Brief 3. London: Youth Endowment Fund.
  • Farrington, D. P., Utting, D. and Axford, N. (2021) . In: Farrington, D. P., Jonkman, H. and Groeger-Roth, F. (Eds) . Switzerland: Springer.
  • McKaskill, M., Axford, N., Hobbs, T., McNeil, B., Freeman, L., & Lily, R. (2021) . London: Youth Endowment Fund.

2020
  • Green, F., Hobbs, T., Axford, N., Ellis, D., Mannes, J., Freeman, L., Murphy, M., Lily, R., Burns, L., Rybczynska-Bunt, S., Thompson, T., & Tredinnick-Rowe, J. (2020). . London: Youth Endowment Fund.
  • Axford, N., Berry, V., Lloyd, J., Hobbs, T., & Wyatt, K. (2020) .
  • Axford, N., Bjornstad, G., Matthews, J., Whybra, L., Berry, V., Ukoumunne, O., Hobbs, T., Wrigley, Z., Brook, L., Taylor, R., Eames, T., Kallitsoglou, A., Blower, S., & Warner, G. (2020) .
  • Axford, N., Bjornstad, G., Matthews, J., Heilmann, S., Raja, A., Ukoumunne, O., Berry, V., Wilkinson, T., Timmons, L., Hobbs, T., Eames, T., Kallitsoglou, A., Blower, S., & Warner, G. (2020) .
  • Axford, N., Bjornstad, G., Clarkson, S., Ukoumunne, O., Wrigley, Z., Matthews, J., Berry, V., & Hutchings, J. (2020) . Prevention Science, 21, 615-626.
  • Bjornstad, G. J., Sonthalia, S., Rouse, B., Timmons, L., Whybra, L., & Axford, N. (2020) . Campbell Systematic Reviews 16, (1).
2019
  • Axford, N., Berry, V., Lloyd, J., Moore, D., Rogers, M., Hurst, A., Blockley, K., Durkin, H. and Minton, J. (2019) . London: Education Endowment Foundation.
  • Axford, N. and Albers, B. (2019) London: Save the Children UK.
  • Barlow, J. and Axford, N. (2019) . In Edmond, A. (Ed.) Health for All Children, 5th Edition. Oxford, Oxford University Press.
  • Schrader-McMillan, A. and Axford, N. (2019) . In Edmond, A. et al (Ed.) Health for All Children, 5th Edition. Oxford, Oxford University Press.
  • Glover, V., Reynolds, R., Barlow, J. and Axford, N. (2019) . In Edmond, A. (Ed.) Health for All Children, 5th Edition. Oxford, Oxford University Press.
2018
  • Axford, N. & Berry, V. (2018) . British Journal of Social Work 48 (1), 254-273.
  • Axford, N., Lowther, K., Timmons, L., Brook, L., Webb, L., & Sonthalia, S. (2018) Programme 5-19. London: Public Health England.
  • Axford, N., Warner, G., Hobbs, T., Heilmann, S., Raja, A., Berry, V., Ukoumunne, O. C., Matthews, J., Eames, T., Kallitsoglou, A., Blower, S., Wilkinson, T., Timmons, L. & Bjornstad, G. (2018) , BMC Psychology 6:3.
  • Whybra, L., Warner, G., Bjornstad, G., Hobbs, T., Brook, L., Wrigley Z., Berry, V., Ukoumunne, O. C., Matthews, J., Taylor, R., Eames, T., Kallitsoglou, A., Blower, S. & Axford, N. (2018) The effectiveness of Chance UK’s mentoring programme in improving behavioural and emotional outcomes in primary school children with behavioural difficulties: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial. BMC Psychology. Mar 12;6(1):9.
  • Axford, N., Whelan, S. & Hobbs, T. (2018) ‘Wrong’ Answer, Right Response: Learning from randomised controlled trials when you don’t get the results you were hoping for. Realising Ambition Programme Insight #11.
  • Van Poortlviet, M., Axford, N. and Lloyd, J. (2018) London: Education Endowment Foundation.
  • Axford, N., Lowther, K., Cuffe-Fuller, B., Rothman, R., Buckley, J., Cruise, K., Evans, C., Linton, E., Mackinnon, L., Porter, D., Wragg, C. and Wren, M. (2018) FNP ADAPT Key Documents.London: FNPNU.

Collaborators

University of Exeter
  • Daniel Ellis
  • Keira Lowther
  • Louise Morpeth
  • Jenny North
  • Deon Simpson