Abstract
Background
This study will evaluate the Basic Income for Care Leavers in Wales pilot (BIP), which is the most generous basic income scheme in the world. A cohort of care-experienced young people who become aged 18 during a 12-month enrolment period (July 2022-June 2023) are receiving £1,600 (before tax) per month for two years, and the Welsh Government intends this to have a range of benefits. This evaluation will examine the impact of BIP, the implementation of the pilot and how it is experienced, and its value for money.
Methods
The study is a theory-based quasi-experimental evaluation, and the design and methods are informed by ongoing co-production with care-experienced young people. We will estimate the impact of BIP on participants using self-reported survey data and routinely collected administrative data. This will include outcomes across a range of domains, including psychological wellbeing, physical and mental health, financial impact, education, training and volunteering. Comparisons between temporal (Welsh) and geographical (English, using administrative data) controls will be done using coarsened exact matching and difference in differences analysis. The process evaluation will examine how BIP is implemented and experienced, primarily through monitoring data (quantitative) and interview, observational, and focus group data (qualitative). The economic evaluation will take a public sector and a societal perspective to identify, measure and value the costs and outcomes of BIP, and to synthesise the evidence to inform a social cost-benefit analysis at 24 months post-intervention.
Discussion
BIP is unusual in that it targets a wide range of outcomes and is available to an entire national cohort of participants. The evaluation also has several practical constraints. Therefore, the study will use a range of methods and triangulate between different analyses to assess how successful it is. Findings will inform policy in relation to care leavers, social security and basic income studies worldwide.
This study will evaluate the Basic Income for Care Leavers in Wales pilot (BIP), which is the most generous basic income scheme in the world. A cohort of care-experienced young people who become aged 18 during a 12-month enrolment period (July 2022-June 2023) are receiving £1,600 (before tax) per month for two years, and the Welsh Government intends this to have a range of benefits. This evaluation will examine the impact of BIP, the implementation of the pilot and how it is experienced, and its value for money.
Methods
The study is a theory-based quasi-experimental evaluation, and the design and methods are informed by ongoing co-production with care-experienced young people. We will estimate the impact of BIP on participants using self-reported survey data and routinely collected administrative data. This will include outcomes across a range of domains, including psychological wellbeing, physical and mental health, financial impact, education, training and volunteering. Comparisons between temporal (Welsh) and geographical (English, using administrative data) controls will be done using coarsened exact matching and difference in differences analysis. The process evaluation will examine how BIP is implemented and experienced, primarily through monitoring data (quantitative) and interview, observational, and focus group data (qualitative). The economic evaluation will take a public sector and a societal perspective to identify, measure and value the costs and outcomes of BIP, and to synthesise the evidence to inform a social cost-benefit analysis at 24 months post-intervention.
Discussion
BIP is unusual in that it targets a wide range of outcomes and is available to an entire national cohort of participants. The evaluation also has several practical constraints. Therefore, the study will use a range of methods and triangulate between different analyses to assess how successful it is. Findings will inform policy in relation to care leavers, social security and basic income studies worldwide.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Journal | PLoS ONE |
| Volume | 19 |
| Issue number | 10 |
| Early online date | 18 Oct 2024 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 21 Oct 2024 |
Data Availability Statement
No datasets were generated or analysed during the current study. All relevant data from this study will be made available upon study completion.Acknowledgements
We are grateful to several colleagues who reviewed this paper and offered comments and suggestions. In particular, Carly Jones, Launa Anderson, Gill Davies and Adam Jones offered valuable feedback from a Welsh Government perspective, and Dr. Elliot Johnson provided helpful input from an academic perspective. Members of our strategic advisory group also provided constructive feedback on the initial draft. They are Dr. Belinda Bateman, Professor Heikki Hiilamo, Professor Ive Marx, Dr. Marcia Gibson, Professor Katherine Shelton, Dr. Jose-Luis Fernandez, Tony Wilson, and Dr. Eleanor Ott. We are also pleased to acknowledge colleagues who have worked on the survey design and distribution, in particular Susanna Larsson, Linda Briheim, and Professor Julie Selwyn.Funding
This study was funded by the Welsh Government. The ActEarly UK Prevention Research Partnership Consortium (Project Reference: MR/S037527/1) supported Professor Kate E. Pickett’s involvement in the study. Health and Care Research Wales provided infrastructure funding that supports the study at CASCADE, Cardiff University.
