Third sector organisations delivering parenting programmes

: A case study

Abstract

Parenting programmes are popular because they are a short-term, cost-effective mechanism for improving child outcomes. Third sector organisations (TSOs) deliver much of the parenting programmes in England, primarily enabled by funding from government agencies and public sector bodies. The grassroots TSO delivery context has been a notable absence from the literature. This doctoral thesis reports on an in-depth case study examining TSOs community-based delivery of an inclusive parenting programme to predominantly racially-minoritised families over 13-years. The case study was theoretically grounded in Foucault’s conceptualisation of governmentality and drew on Bourdieu’s notions of the ‘field of struggle’ to frame how TSOs negotiate the requirements of funding systems. Critical Race Theory (CRT) and Critical Whiteness Studies (CWS) were engaged as analytical tools. The study layered methods including narrative interviews with TSO based parenting programme practitioners and organisational leaders, commissioners and service managers; with documentary analysis of Charity Commission returns, service-agreements, evaluation reports, and calls for tender, to curate a holistic picture illuminating the complexity of the case.

This study demonstrates how funder priorities shape how and to whom TSOs deliver parenting programmes. Securing funding builds organisational reputations and constitutes expert-positionalities, but also directs expertise and can shape how the TSO's mission is understood by funders. Funding stream related data-monitoring and administrative requirements can overload TSOs. In this case study leading to removal of programme components - a serious issue that will affect expected outcomes. Funding which targeted delivery to racially-minoritised communities contributed to some white practitioners claiming expertise in the lived experience of racially-minoritised communities in ways which demonstrated benevolent racism. This was exacerbated by non-compliance with quality assurance measures partly caused by resistance to changing power-relations between different actors within the case study, in turn brought about by the conditions attached to different funding streams.
The full text of this thesis is embargoed as it contains sensitive information.

Date of Award	4 Feb 2025
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	University of Bristol
Supervisor	Morag A McDermont (Supervisor) & Therese O'Toole (Supervisor)