Kada Research were commissioned by the Sheffield-based refugee and asylum charity ASSIST to evaluate their housing pilot, which housed individuals who have been granted asylum in the UK. Kada were asked to evaluate stakeholder, landlord and tenant perceptions of the housing pilot and consider potential growth scenarios for the housing programme.

Kada interviewed stakeholders from the charity, such as the accommodation team, management, and the maintenance team, to discuss their strategic goals, delivery of the project and how they would like to see the pilot progress. Kada then interviewed landlords who had supported ASSIST through donating houses to the project. They were asked about their motivations, communication with ASSIST and their future with the charity. Finally, Kada interviewed the families who live in the houses provided for ASSIST. The families were asked to discuss their experiences in the house, their relationship with ASSIST and any support they have received or would like to receive.

Alongside this, Kada used income and outgoings data provided by ASSIST to calculate a number of potential directions that the housing project could take. These calculations looked at the potential of taking on more family houses, opening houses for single refugees and taking on more core staff.

The housing pilot was found to be a profitable venture for the charity, helping them to support their core client base of those who are seeking asylum in the UK. There are advantages to increasing the scale of activity and diversifying further should the charity chose to. Further to this, feedback from tenants of the properties was overwhelmingly positive, with many stating that the housing had helped them to feel settled in Sheffield. Stakeholders and landlords were also largely positive about the pilot and its potential.

If you are thinking about commissioning and evaluation or if you would like to talk through an idea or hear about this work you can contact us at info@kadaresearch.co.uk.

In the Summer of 2022, Kada evaluated the first phase of Sheffield City Council’s (SCC) Economic Recovery Fund, a £2 million fund designed to support post Covid-19 high street recovery in the city’s district centres. To increase footfall and resident spend, SCC provided a series of grants to local groups of up to £200,000 to encourage a community led response to high street recovery.

As part of the evaluation, Kada researchers spoke to leading stakeholders, grant beneficiaries, community groups, and residents to evaluate the strengths, areas of potential improvement, and the economic and social value impact of the projects. Alongside this, Kada undertook a comprehensive desk review into the post Covid-19 high street context.

Kada concluded that Sheffield’s Economic Recovery Fund achieved a wide variety of outputs including the formation of new constituted community groups, the establishment of eight new business forums, numerous successful community events, and physical improvements to many district centres. Kada’s economic and social value modelling found that between £1.99 and £2.24 of social value was created by the programme for every £1 spent.

The improvements were well received by residents and stakeholders welcomed the legacy upon resident autonomy and the city’s community infrastructure. The evaluation showed that there was a real appetite for future iterations of the programme across the city. Kada provided a series of strategic and operational recommendations focused on how the programme could continue to evolve to maintain and increase its impact. These conclusions and recommendations were used to improve the next iteration of Economic Recovery Fund.

If you are thinking about commissioning an economic impact/social value or high street regeneration study, you can get in touch at info@kadaresearch.co.uk, or if you would like to talk through an idea or hear about this work you can contact Pat at pat@kadaresearch.co.uk

Kada Research were commissioned by the University of Birmingham to evaluate the ERDF funded DIGI-RAIL West Midlands programme which has helped to diversify the rail industry supply chain and bring more digital technologies to the rail sector.

DIGI-RAIL worked with SMEs to help them access opportunities in the rail industry in turn promoting innovation within the sector. The programme’s Get Into Rail events introduced SME suppliers to the sector who also benefited from world-leading facilities at the Birmingham Centre for Railway Research and Education (BCRRE) to develop new products.

Interviews and roundtables with programme managers, delivery staff and PhD researchers complemented consultations with industry representatives and a beneficiary survey. The research allowed the Kada evaluation team to assess the strengths and successes of the different elements of the programme, explore its added value and identify lessons learned for future programme design and delivery after ERDF. It was important to understand the benefits not just to SMEs, but to academics at the University and the wider industry. The programme monitoring data was used alongside the beneficiary survey data to estimate the economic impact of the programme on the region.

The evaluation found that breaking down perceived barriers to SMEs entering the rail industry and working with academic institutions was important for success. Business-focussed support, industry connections and the technical expertise and facilities were strengths. New product development benefitted from longer collaboration projects which started after COVID-19 restrictions ended.

If you are thinking about commissioning an evaluation or business research study or if you would like to talk through an idea or hear more about this project you can contact us at sam@kadaresearch.co.uk.

North Yorkshire’s Police, Fire & Crime Commissioner commissioned Kada Research to evaluate North Yorkshire’s public safety service (PSS) pilot. The PSS provides generalist support to the community and targeted interventions preventing harm and risk, particularly to vulnerable residents in rural areas.

The pilot aims to improve local capacity across multiple services (initially including the North Yorkshire Police, the Yorkshire Ambulance Service (YAS), and the North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service) by providing support and targeted prevention interventions through specific services. It brings together several organisations to improve the safety and resilience of communities.

The PSS is a model based on an outcome-led Public Health approach. It focuses on ‘population’ not ‘the sector’ or ‘the service’. It was established on the understanding that it was not designed to deliver ‘quick fix’ solutions, but to address the underlying causes of vulnerability that could lead to harm, whether that be from crime, fire, or health-related matters, acknowledging that it would also benefit other organisations.

Importantly, Public Safety Officers rarely act for one of the partner services at a time. The PSS is premised on the fact that every time a threshold is crossed, vulnerability and need is assessed from all service perspectives, regardless of the original reason for crossing. This allows for a holistic approach to preventing vulnerability and reducing harm.

Kada’s evaluation report of Phase Three of the pilot, published in October 2022, incorporates findings from interviews with key stakeholders including members of the tactical and steering groups, and the Public Safety Officers. A logic model was developed; an analysis of recent PSO activity was undertaken, as well as an assessment of the impact and social value of the service. Case studies, which include testimonies from people who have been impacted by the public safety service and a PSO video diary, including two case studies on water safety and road safety, were produced. You can watch our video case study here.

Our research found that the pilot has been successful; the rationale for the service around preventing vulnerability and risk remains as relevant as ever and the service’s objectives are clear-cut. PSOs have helped vulnerable people and reduced risk. A team of four high-calibre well-respected officers were recruited and started to embed a preventative philosophy within the county and extend the reach of harm reduction activities providing crime prevention, fire safety, and health and wellbeing information, as well as supporting community problem-solving. There was a noticeable shift away from response to prevention activity and PSOs have been making themselves very visible in their local communities. The profile of the services has grown as a result.  It was concluded that there was consensus that scale-up of the service was both desirable and entirely feasible.

If you are thinking of commissioning an evaluation of a pilot service or similar project, or would like to hear more about large range of evaluation projects we undertake at Kada, please contact our Managing Director, Karl Dalgleish at karl.dalgleish@kadaresearch.co.uk.

The Future High Streets Fund will support and fund local areas’ plans to make their high streets and town centres fit for the future. Kada were commissioned by BDP alongside property specialists, cost consultants and transport planners to advise on developing the economic case.

We worked with the team to develop an overarching business and economic case for the project and assessed the economic effects by quantifying local labour market supply impacts informed by our understanding of the area and by green book guidance.

Kada played a key role in advising on digital technologies for the project and the application, development and implementation of smart city technologies. To inform the master plan, Kada prepared a socio-economic review and an analysis of business and enterprise. As part of the consortium’s public engagement activities, the Kada team spoke to local residents and sites about the options for the town.  We enjoyed working with many different disciplines on a shared vision for the area and at the time of writing await the results of the application with interest.  This was an intellectually demanding study requiring considerable flexibility and teamwork, as well as refining the strategy to consider the implications of Covid-19.

The client was happy with BDP’s leadership of the project and the quality of the support they received. We were delighted to see that during the Christmas break (2020) Heanor were awarded £8.5 million from the Future High Streets Fund to help realise their plans.

On behalf of Amber Valley, we would like to express grateful thanks to you all, for your hard work and expertise throughout the process and ensuring that we compiled a robust application, providing us with the best possible business case to aim to secure funding for the town. You have all been very professional and worked with us through challenging circumstances. I know that the changes to the extended project timeline and supplementary requirement to respond to the Covid situation has been protracted and I appreciate your continued support and maintaining your service and good humour throughout. Please pass on my thanks to your teams.

-Joanne Bamford (Growth & Town Centres Manager, Landscapes, Growth & Community Safety, Amber Valley Borough Council).

Need help with your high street? Struggling to monitor your high street performance? Do get in touch at karl.dalgleish@kadaresearch.co.uk

This major 64,000 sq. ft development, at Forge Way in the Parkgate area of Rotherham, was built speculatively by local developer E V Waddington and offers 10 industrial and manufacturing units.  Like many speculative industrial developments in South Yorkshire, viability was a challenge, so the developer successfully secured European Regional Development Fund to plug the funding gap.  A requirement of the funding was to produce a Summative Assessment of the project.  They commissioned Kada to conduct a review.

It was evident from our initial site visit this was a high quality development, designed with the utmost flexibility and suitable for manufacturing and industrial use.  There was quick take up and the tenants we spoke to really liked the units which were flexible, high quality and had good links to public transport.  The project was located strategically in a Sheffield Rotherham corridor that has a high concentration of advanced manufacturing firms.  The units were all built to a BREEAM specification, with solar power LED lights to the office and warehouse.

This is great example of SMEs investing in industrial space in the heart of Sheffield City Region. The local developer has done similar schemes elsewhere and knew exactly what local industrial firms were looking for – modern and flexible space in a well-connected location. Many of the tenants we spoke to intended to provide new employment opportunities, and this scheme provides a valuable addition to the local business economy.

Karl Dalgleish (Study Director).

Get in touch: If you are thinking about an impact assessment of a physical project or programme you are involved with, speak to karl.dalgleish@kadaresearch.co.uk and he will respond within 24 hours.

Idaq Networks has been providing high speed broadband services to businesses in Sheffield and Rotherham since 2013. The services are delivered using Wireless technology called Fixed Wireless Access (FWA), conventional underground copper and fibre cables are not required.

We helped Idaq Networks draft their submission that resulted in a 10 year deal with Sheffield City Council to provide free Wi-Fi internet access in the outdoor areas of Sheffield City Centre and a number of public buildings. The service is to be rolled out during 2018/19 and will be available to City Centre residents, businesses and visitors. Idaq Networks intends to create one of the best public access Wi-Fi service in the country with blanket coverage within the City ring road. The network will be available throughout the City Centre with speeds up to 20Mb/sec.

Our first task was to identify the added value and the many benefits that could be realised from the service (business, social and smart city benefits). We helped the team articulate the technical requirements, resilience measures, customer experience and performance metrics. We set out their experience, the proposed coverage and tiered service offer. We also needed to work through the health and safety and security and customer service standards. Other features of the bid included a roll out plan and plans for network exploitation by businesses and others.

Once the bid was shortlisted we helped Idaq respond to comments from the appraisal process in advance of their presentation.

“Everyone at Idaq Networks is very excited to be involved in this project. We are a local company and we have already invested heavily in Sheffield developing a commercial network providing high speed internet access to local businesses. This project will enable us to bring free internet access to everyone living in, working in and visiting the City centre in a very short period of time. The project will also allow us to help the Universities, innovative individuals and business start-ups with the development of new technologies and products” Mark Roebuck, Director of IDAQ Networks Ltd. December 2017

Kada Research in association with AspinallVerdi, were commissioned to undertake an economic impact assessment of some public realm improvements in Kidderminster Town Centre for Wyre Forest Borough Council (Wyre Forest is a district in the north of the county of Worcestershire). The study was also part-funded by IBI Group who were interested in understanding more about the effects of their work. The study team developed a unique methodology to ascertain the economic and property (land uplift) impact of the development.

IBI Group developed themed designs for the street furniture and public art based on the town’s ‘rock music’ and postal heritage. The design addressed several challenges including traffic conflicts. The new design was simple and included minimal clutter improving the quality and quantity of space available to pedestrians. The works also provided a suitable setting for the Town Hall and created a valuable civic space for shoppers and events. The project was carried out between 2015 and mid 2017 at a cost of £2 million.

We did a street survey and used benchmarks and case studies to estimate the potential net productivity and land uplifts. We also summarised the many wider benefits that public realm can bring. The client described the study as a good read and used it to inform other projects. It was one of the first studies that we are aware of to assess both land value uplift as per the recent Government guidance and productivity benefits. If you are looking for a cost effective way of demonstrating the impact of public realm or similar investments do get in touch – we can do these studies quickly.

“I like this study on so many levels. We had strong materials from IBI showing the design framework. We were very confident of the impacts as we had surveyed the study area ourselves, spoke to the regeneration team and were building on a methodology we had used successfully elsewhere. I actually spoke to the contractor that undertook the work so the construction impacts were spot on!”

~ Karl Dalgleish, Kada Research, March 2018

A European Strategic Investment Framework and Strategic Economic Plan for D2N2 LEP in association with ekosgen who acted as lead contractor. The ESIF sets out D2N2’s ambitions for the 2014-2020 European Programme and how the LEP proposes to use its £214m notional allocation of EU funds to achieve these ambitions. The Growth Plan sets out to support the creation of 55,000 additional private sector jobs in D2N2 by 2023, through a range of measures to increase business competitiveness and raise employment levels. D2N2 secured a £554m local growth investment package.

“This D2N2 Strategic Economic Plan is distinctive, supporting not only iconic D2N2 businesses, like Rolls Royce, Alliance Boots, Toyota, Speedo, British Sugar, Thorntons, Capital One and Bombardier, to compete but also the area SMEs and start-ups to grow faster, access finance, innovate and export.”

~ D2N2 SEP, 2014-2020

Here as sub-contractors to ekosgen we worked closely with the LEP team and partners to craft a narrative for the area around the Energy Estuary underpinned by evidence and agreed by stakeholders. Kada was also commissioned with ekosgen to prepare the LEP’s strategic economic plan. These studies involved major business and stakeholder consultation events on the north and south bank and negotiations with senior politicians and officers. The Humber managed to secure a £366m growth deal package.

“We believe that we are on the brink of an extremely exciting and transformational period of economic activity in the Humber, driven by major investment in and around our estuary.”

~ Humber ESIF, 2014-2020