Evaluation of an extended brief intervention for parents and carers of overweight children

Full project title: School Health Assistant delivery of an extended brief intervention for parents and carers of overweight children aged 4-5 years: an evaluation

Duration: 2023–2024

Project lead for CPHWB: Dr Emma Bird

Other CPHWB researcher: Dr Issy Bray

Research partner/collaborator: N/A

Funders:

•  Bristol City Council
• North Somerset District Council
• South Gloucestershire Council

This project involved the evaluation of a healthy weight extended brief intervention (EBI) for parents (and carers with parental responsibilities) of children aged four to five years categorised as ‘overweight’ or ‘very overweight’. Delivered by School Health Assistants (SHAs) working within the School Nursing Service, the EBI aimed to:

1. raise parent and carer awareness of overweight and obesity in their children and increase parents and carer understanding of the health consequences of overweight and obesity.
2. promote healthy lifestyle behaviours and intentions.

The Centre’s evaluation utilised the Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, and Maintenance (RE-AIM) framework to consider implementation issues associated with delivery of the EBI and to identify recommendations to guide its future development.

Mixed methods evaluation data were collected from a range of sources. Parents and carers completed cross-sectional questionnaires (N=240) at 3 time points, and descriptive statistics were used to describe the dataset. Stakeholder telephone interviews (N=20) were conducted with parents and carers, SHAs, School Nursing Leads and local authority public health teams. Interview topic guides were tailored to role and data were analysed using a form of thematic analysis. Monitoring data were analysed to determine EBI eligibility and engagement.

Our evaluation found that contact was established with 83% of eligible parents and carers (234/282), but only 10% went on to participate in the pilot (29/282). Numerous factors, including a desire for more comprehensive support, were associated with low uptake. Stakeholder interviews indicated broad support for the EBI, but it was recognised that future efforts should develop a clearer cross-team vision and appoint an overall EBI lead. Additional mandatory training for SHAs is recommended to promote consistent delivery of evidence-based support to parents and carers.  

• School Health Assistant delivery of an extended brief intervention for parents and carers of overweight children aged 4-5 years: Evaluation report
• School health assistant delivery of an extended brief intervention for parents and carers of overweight children aged 4-5 years. Evaluation report: Executive Summary

For further information about the project, please contact Dr Emma Bird (emma.bird@uwe.ac.uk).