Appendix G: Information sheet for project workers/facilitators
Fathers and the Stronger Families and Communities Strategy information sheet for project workers/facilitators
Dear SFCS project worker/facilitator,
The Australian Institute of Family Studies (AIFS) is currently conducting a study on father participation in parenting and family services and child development and wellbeing programs. The study is part of a national evaluation of the Stronger Families and Communities Strategy (SFCS), which is funding all Communities for Children, Local Answers and Invest to Grow programs, services and activities.
The purpose of the study is to gauge the proportion of fathers participating in SFCS services and programs and to explore issues concerning father engagement and service satisfaction. Your Project Manager recently completed a survey about the participation of fathers in your service or program and now we would like to learn more about the experiences of project workers and facilitators.
We would like to meet with you to conduct a face-to-face interview about your experiences working with fathers. We are particularly interested to hear about:
- Your experiences and views on working with fathers;
- What you feel your program/service provides fathers and why it is a useful/valuable activity for fathers to be engaged in;
- How do you feel working with fathers and meeting their needs may differ from engaging with other client groups;
- Successful strategies for engaging fathers in the service/program; and
- Any challenges you have experienced engaging fathers with the service/program.
The interview will be conducted with an AIFS researcher and will take about an hour. Participation in the interview is voluntary and the information you provide us will be kept in the strictest confidence.
This is an opportunity for you to share your opinions and views on working with fathers in community services and to contribute to building the Australian knowledge base about how we can more effectively provide fathers with quality services and increase their participation in parenting and child and family wellbeing programs and projects.
We would also like to ask you to help us to recruit fathers to participate in the focus group we will be running when we visit your service/program. This involves distributing the enclosed information sheet to fathers and arranging a suitable time and location for the focus group to take place.
The Australian Institute of Family Studies is Australia's foremost centre for research and information on family wellbeing. Located in Melbourne, the institute has been investigating and promoting understanding of factors affecting marital and family stability in Australia since 1980. If you would like more information about us please visit our website at www.aifs.gov.au.
For more information about AIFS involvement in the SFCS national evaluation please visit the Communities and Families Clearinghouse Australia website at www.aifs.gov.au/cafca/.
Thank you for taking the time to consider taking part in the study. If you have any further questions please do not hesitate to contact the AIFS Research officer.