18 October 2013
Terms of reference of the Office of Research Innocenti
Consultancy
Family and parenting support policies, programmes and services
1. Background
Family and parenting support programmes are increasingly being recognized as an important
part of national social policies and social investment packages aimed at reducing poverty,
decreasing inequality and promoting positive family and child well-being. Families play a central
economic role, they provide protection and insurance against hardship, they can offer identity,
love, care and development to their members and form the core of many social networks. 1
Investment in all families, complemented by targeted support for the most vulnerable families
at risk of poverty, exclusion and deprivation, is a fundamental building block of cohesive
societies.2
UNICEF’s Social Protection Framework defines family support as activities to strengthen and
preserve families, prevent family separation/breakdown and ensure early intervention in
families at risk. 3 Family support services and programmes can range from parenting
programmes, strengthening family and community networks, family mediation, provision of
child care facilities, family visits, resource centres. The importance of family and parenting
support has also been acknowledged by other international and regional organisations and
bodies. In 2006, the Council of Europe issued a recommendation that encourages states to
recognise the importance of parental responsibilities and the need to provide parents with
sufficient support in bringing up their children. The European Commission’s Social Investment
Package focuses on integrated packages of benefits and services that help people throughout
their lives. Family and parenting support is one of the elements of this recommended package
of services.4
As social protection programmes and systems are becoming increasingly important in both
lower and middle income countries as mechanisms to alleviate poverty and promote inclusion,
there is a growing recognition in these countries that cash support cannot address all causes of
1
Adema, W. Setting the scene: The mix of family policy objectives and packages across the OECD. Children and Youth Services
Review 34 (2012) 487–498.
2 Eurochild, (2012). Compendium of inspiring practices. Early intervention and prevention in family and parenting support.
October 2012
3 Integrated Social Protection Systems: Enhancing Equity for Children. UNICEF Social Protection Strategic Framework.
4
Council of Europe. Recommendation Rec(2006)19 of the Committee of Ministers to member states
on policy to support positive parenting; European Commission Reccomendation of 20.3.2013. Investing in children: breaking
the cycle of disadvantage.
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inequity nor can help in situations where poverty alone is not the only cause of exclusion,
family separation, poor child developmental outcomes, violence and neglect.
Despite the efforts to define family and parenting support there is still no universal
understanding on what family and parenting support means, though at the European level
there have been several attempts to define family support and parenting support.5 In fact, in
different parts of the world the concept of family and parenting support has had different
meanings and has been grounded in different societal structures. In the western (primarily
European) societal model, family and parenting support is increasingly being guaranteed and
regulated by national and regional policies.6 For example the European Commission
Recommendation Investing in Children: breaking the cycle of disadvantage calls for enhanced
family support through strengthened child protection and social services in the field of
prevention and help for families to develop parenting skills in a non-stigmatizing way. In middle
income countries, family and parenting support may take different forms; it is sometimes the
objects of integrated family policies and services and sometimes carried out by local actors and
networks that are not necessarily tied into a broader national framework. In lower income
countries, particularly in some parts of Africa for example, family support is rarely the object of
national policies or social work practice, and in reality is grounded in informal social networks,
traditional practices and social norms that promote family and community caring. However,
when communities or peer networks are unable to offer sufficient support to families due to
sudden shocks or major breakdown in community cohesion (such as the large number of OVCs
in some African countries being cared for by extended families), the state has a critical role to
play in strengthening these support mechanisms.7 Overall, parenting programmes are
increasingly being delivered by professional or paraprofessional staff, though concerns are also
raised about availability of qualified professionals and sustained funding for the longer term
delivery of programmes.8
1.1 Evidence of policy and programme effectiveness
Over the past 20 years different models of family related services have evolved in different
parts of the world. The benefits of different types of approaches have been documented in
literature, along with the analysis of social and economic/budgetary policies on family support
programme financing. Currently most evidence is coming from high-income countries and
5
See for example Dolan, P. Canavan, J. and Pinkerton, J. (2006). Family Support as Reflective Practice. Jessica Kingsley
Publishers. London and Philadelphia. Daly, M in EUROFOUND (2012) Parenting Support in Europe.
6 Ref: Mention here various EU and OECD policies, Eurofound paper
7Garcia, M. and Moore, C. M. T. (2012). The Cash Dividend. The Rise of Cash Transfer Programs in Sub-Saharan Africa,
Washington DC: The World Bank. Ward, P. et al for UNICEF. Cash Transfer Programme for Orphans and Vulnerable Children (CTOVC), Kenya, Operational and Impact Evaluation 2007-2009.
8 Knerr, W, Gardner, F and Cluver, L. 2011. Parenting and the prevention of child maltreatment in low- and middle-income
countries.
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predominantly from the US, Canada, Australia and the UK.9 Some of the parenting programmes
have had an impact on improved child outcomes, such as health status, early childhood
development, improved communication and relationship between parents and children,
reduction in parental stress, protection of children from corporal punishment, reduction of
adolescent risky behavior and improved adolescent social competences.10
Evidence from other parts of the world is slowly beginning to emerge which contributes to the
global knowledge base on what works in different national and cultural contexts 11 as models
that have been proven effective in the West are not necessarily transferable to middle income
and lower income countries for reasons such as: the cost associated with these imported
parenting models (both in terms of license purchase and implementation costs), differences in
family structures and dynamics, parenting practices and prevalence of orphanhood or family
separation due to migration, which may require different programme design and approaches. 12
The success of the implementation of family support and parenting programmes will also
depend on structural factors such as legislation, policies, financial resources, inter-sectoral
collaboration, leadership buy-in, existence or absence of professional workforce, and
geography.1314
This proposed research aims to provide a more thorough understanding of the nature of
parenting support in a global context, the social and structural influences and the relationship
between the policy, intervention, context, mechanism and outcome - theories (pathways) of
change and associated outcomes. What are the key ingredients of family and parenting support
programmes and services that work well together under different circumstances, in different
cultural contexts and different political and economic settings (universal factors)? What are the
additional components and influences needed to ensure the same type of positive results in
unique circumstances (contextual factors)? What drives the development of policy in this field
9
Substantive evaluative evidence already exists in relation to programmes such as Tripple P, Sure Start, Nurse Family
Partnerships and some others, see for example http://www.arnec.net/ntuc/slot/u2323/ediscussion/11017_SP700310_PPET[1].pdf; http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1314244/pdf/12030667.pdf;
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2214.2007.00750.x/full
10
In relation to adolescent wellbeing outcome see the following: Moore, K.A., Whitney, K. and Kinukawa, A. 2009. Exploring the
Links between Family Strengths and Adolescent Outcomes. Child Trends Research brief. No. 2009-20; Jackson, A.C. and all. An
overview of prevention of multiple risk behavior in adolescence and young adulthood. Journal of Public Health | Vol. 34, No. S1,
pp. i31–i40.
11 Initiatives from EUROCHILD and the Evaluation Challenge Fund that examine a range of impact evaluations for example. See
also World Health Organization, 2007. Helping parents in developing countries improve adolescent health.
12Mikton, C., Two challenges to importing evidence-based child maltreatment prevention programmes developed in high income
countries to low – and middle – income countries: generazibility and affordability, World Perspectives on Child Abuse, ISPCAN
2012
13Knerr, W., Gardner, F., Cluver, L. (2011). Oak Foundation, lower income countries systemic review Parenting and the
prevention of child maltreatment in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review of interventions and a discussion of
prevention of the risks of future violent behaviour among boys.
14 For detailed description of 10 dimensions of violence prevention readiness see Mikton et al. (2011). A Multidimensional
model for child maltreatment prevention readiness in low-and middle income countries. Journal of Community Psycology, 39(7):
826-843.
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and how do the policy changes affect the implementation of family and parenting support
programmes?
1.2 The overall aim of the proposed research
The aim of this research is two-fold: a) to contribute to the global evidence that can guide the
development of family oriented policies and programmes in different contexts and b) to
showcase the best evidenced practice models that can be used or adapted by countries in the
process of developing family and parenting support programmes.
The planned research will
1) Examine different conceptual understandings and different policy orientations of
family and parenting support as a key strategy to promote child and adolescent
well-being.
2) Examine effectiveness of different approaches to family and parenting support
through systematic review of evidence taking into account their design,
targeting, inclusiveness, contextual factors and applicability across different
settings.
3) Carry out in-country mapping and analysis of institutional and organisational
mechanisms, relations, capacities and service outreach in selected countries
with a view to identifying supportive factors as well as obstacles to programme
success i.e. programme accessibility, inclusiveness and effectiveness.
These Terms of Reference relate only to the Component 1 of the proposed research.
2. Objectives:
This consultancy is related to the component 1 of the research project as indicated above. The
Component 1 will consist of a development of a theoretical framework and a grounding paper
that will contribute to a conceptual understanding of family and parenting support as one of
the key strategies to promote family and child wellbeing and mitigate the risk of violence, abuse
and family separation. The consultant(s) will:
1. Examine different theoretical and conceptual underpinnings of family and parenting
support and different policy orientations. This will take into account various geographic,
contextual and cultural environments. The paper will aim to expand the current
understanding of family and parenting support as conceptualized in high income
countries and include perspectives from middle and lower income countries taking the
child life course approach (0-18).
2. Examine the position of family and parenting support policies within the broader
frameworks of laws, policies, structures and institutions aimed at promotion of childwellbeing and prevention of violence, abuse and family separation.
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3. Propose a theoretical/conceptual model that will show potential pathways of policy
change and associated outcomes. This component will also identify key actors and
interests in the field of family support.
3. Specific activities
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The consultant(s) will develop an analytical framework and methodology for review of
family and parenting support theories (including definitions and concepts) and policy
orientations that takes into account a)different national contexts and b) life course of
the child
Based on the analytical framework, carry our literature review, policy analysis and key
informant interviews to identify prevailing theoretical and policy orientations in family
and parenting support.
In broad terms, identify from existing evidence, how family related policies are shaped
or complemented by other types of laws and policies (a few examples from higher
income and lower income countries identified) and where parenting support fits in the
policy portfolio. Identify, whenever possible, what types of evidence is missing.
Develop a conceptual model that shows potential pathways of influences and impacts of
family support and parenting policies on the family and child wellbeing.
4. Specific outputs/products results with specific delivery dates:
1. Analytical framework and methodological tool for the assignment. This will elaborate
on the methodology that was submitted in the application for the position. The
methodological tool will be expanded based on the review of the project
documentation and discussions with key stakeholders. This would be reviewed by the
OoR and the advisory group. (By 15th December)
2. A draft discussion paper that includes proposed conceptual framework shared with OoR
and an advisory group for input and comments and presented at the meeting in
Florence. (28th February 2014)
3. The final report of approximately 40-50 pages including executive summary and
bibliography, that highlights key theoretical and policy approaches to family and
parenting support and identifies recommendations for future research and policy
action. The final report should incorporate all the input from the OoR and the advisory
group. The terminology and referencing of the report should in conformity with UNICEF
Style Book 2011 and the Reference Guide (to be shared with the consultant). (By 30th
April 2014).
Timeframe: 5 months (November 2013 –April 2014)
5. Qualifications and/or special knowledge/experience required and desirable for
undertaking the assignment:
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The institution should have high level expertise in research on policy and evidence based
practice related to family and parenting support in particular in relation to child wellbeing and
child welfare. The institutions should be able to draw on expertise of the top thinkers from both
the global North and the South and to have a recognized status among academics and policy
makers as one of the top institutions in this field. Expertise in developing complex research
programmes and including the assessment of national policies and programmes related to
family and parenting support is highly desirable.
The focal point at the Institution and a lead researcher should have:
 PhD in social sicence and social policy
 At least 15 years of academic and research experience related to family policy, social
policy, child poverty and welfare.
 A strong publication record relating to the above theme and proven record of
developing and managing multi-country research projects
 Excellent English report writing skills
The research project will be guided by the advisory group comprised of known experts possibly
from different parts of the world. Prior to the commencement of the project an advisory group
will meet in Florence to define the parameters of the research project.
6. Duration of the consultancy:
80 working days over a 5-month period
7. Supervision and work arrangements:
The assignment will be carried out under the overall supervision of Jasmina Byrne, Child
Protection Specialist, Office of Research, Innocenti.
The consultant will be primarily home-based. S/he will be expected to have very frequent
contact with her/his supervisor via email and phone. All submissions will be made
electronically.
HOW TO APPLY
Qualified candidates (individuals or institutions) are requested to submit a cover letter, a short outline
methodology with time line for the assignment (max 2 pages), an example of their published work
ideally on family and parenting support and their CV(s) to jdariol@unicef.org with subject line “Family
and Parenting Support policies” by 30 October 2013. Please indicate your ability, availability and
proposed fee to undertake the terms of reference above.
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