Escape Family Support
Rent Deposit Guarantee Scheme
Social Return on Investment Method Statement
Social Return on Investment (SROI) seeks to provide an informed estimate of the monetary
value of the interventions and support offered to clients, and the lifestyle and behavioural
changes which result.
An SROI analysis relies upon:
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A robust theory of change – what changes have occurred and how are they
evidenced
An understanding of scale - how much change has occurred and how long it has
lasted/is expected to last
An understanding of attribution – how much of that change would have happened
without the intervention and support provided and how much may be attributable
to other agencies
Available financial proxies - what sources are available from which to make an
informed estimate of the value the interventions and support
In estimating the SROI of the Rent Deposit Guarantee Scheme (RDGS), Escape has worked
with Philip Angier and Dr Arthur Affleck of Angier Griffin. Their advice and support has been
made possible as part of a Community Right to Challenge programme funded by the Social
Investment Business.
Theory of Change
A theory of change Impact Map was adopted which considered the full range of Escape’s
family support interventions. The Impact Map served to highlight that central to Escape’s
effectiveness as a support organisation is the range of interventions it is able to sustain –
giving clients access to a breadth of support.
Scale & Impact
This breadth of provision also means that Escape is able to introduce clients to specific
support interventions – such as the RDGS – when they are ready. Taking care in accepting
the right clients onto the Scheme has resulted in a relative low level of failure in terms of
the number and value of bonds forfeited.
Of the 45 tenancies created, 4 tenants have left their tenancies with landlords making valid
bond claims which were not covered by the total amount of client bond savings. The total
liability of paperless bonds to date is £18,986.00 of which £702.00 has been paid out of
bond reserves. There is currently £2,887.04 available bond reserves and £7,410.96 being
repaid which will be recycled. The current Local Authority investment into the bond
reserves is £11,000.00 the use of the Credit Union repayment approach and recycling of
bond reserves means that funds become available for reinvestment before a tenancy ends.
This has allowed ESCAPE to maximise the number of clients who benefit from the scheme.
Attribution
The question of attribution for the RDGS is complicated. Securing a tenancy may be the
‘tipping point’ for significant change in the life of a client – from a chaotic lifestyle with
bouts of substance abuse, children at risk and occasional brushes with the justice system to
a more settled lifestyle, children attending school and engagement with education or
training for employment.
Clearly the whole effect of that transformation cannot be attributed to the RDGS – it is the
cumulative product of support from statutory agencies, from family and friends, and (often)
from Escape both before and during their participation in the Scheme.
Nevertheless, without RDGS or its equivalent to help secure a tenancy, some of the other
fruits of support will not be realised.
5 case studies have been prepared (attached as appendix 3) to illustrate the ‘moment of
change’ which RDGS can bring about, and also some of the fruits in terms of improved
outcomes for the tenant and their family.
For the purposes of attribution of SROI, a suggested attribution percentage has been
attached to each case study, and the total aggregated according to an illustrative range of
projected outcomes (attached as appendix 2)
Financial Proxies (appendix 1)
Informed by the case studies, Dr Arthur Affleck has research a range of financial proxies
which illustrate the saving to the public purse of supporting individuals to adopt a more
stable and economically active lifestyle.
Given the care with which clients are accepted onto to the RDGS, judgement must also be
used in the use of these financial proxies. For instance the costs of drug related crime will be
weighted by the (higher) costs of repeat offenders. Those deemed to be ready to engage
with the RDGS are likely to be less frequently involved with the police. By the same token
those ready to take on a tenancy are more likely also to be ready to access support into
employment or training – thus some element of ‘dead weight’ (this would have happened
anyway) should be assumed.
Estimating the SROI of the Scheme
In the light of all of the considerations above, it may be most appropriate to suggest a range
of social return.
Over 3 years the Local Authority have invested £113,291.00.
If a strong view of attribution is taken, giving weighting to the wider contribution of ESCAPE
Family Support in preparing clients for and supporting them through their tenancy, then the
social return may be as high as £3.16 for every £1 invested.
If a weaker view of attribution is taken, giving more weighting to the support of outside
agencies, family and friends, and recognising the implicit deadweight (some clients would
have succeeded anyway) then the social return may be closer to £1.50 for every £1 invested.