Evaluating Home-Start parenting support in the Netherlands

Home visiting and parenting support programmes are widely implemented in the Netherlands as well as on a global level. Parenting support programmes claim to increase parental wellbeing, empowerment and improve parental competencies. By doing so, these programmes aim to prevent mild parenting problems developing into more severe problems or even escalating into child maltreatment.
This thesis aimed to contribute to the ongoing evaluation of Home-Start, a demand oriented volunteer family support programme in the Netherlands. Two evaluation studies were conducted: the first comparing Home-Start to more structured professionalized support and the second comparing the programme to combined care consisting of Home-Start and a structured parent management programme (Triple P group level 4). Additionally, as an outcome of Home-Start, registered occurrence of severe parenting problems and child maltreatment post-programme enrolment was studied.
Home-Start seems to fit well within the current Dutch policy, which emphasises the empowerment and own strength of families when it comes to reducing parenting difficulties. Home-Start reaches its goals in a modest way. Prevention of severe parenting problems and child maltreatment is one of the unfulfilled promises. The programme would probably benefit from improving the recruitment process of families, gaining insight in the elucidation of effective programme elements, implementation of a more systematic monitoring of programme progress and an integration of Home-Start with other services.