Eastbay REAP’s adult and community education programme has a social value of more than $3 million a year.

In an effort to determine whether its goals for the community are being reached, REAP worked with ImpactLab to come up with measurable results for its ACE Learning Support Services.

The programme was shown to have a social value of $3,270,382 over the 2022-23 year.

ACE Learning Support Services offers education to adults who have left school and are wanting to pick up skills and prepare to enter the workforce.

The programme offers a range of educational opportunities including support around drivers licensing, te reo Māori courses, parenting and budgeting courses, literacy education and digital and communications education.

Eastbay REAP chief executive Ryan Morrison said it was the first time the organisation had worked with an external expert research group.

“As an education organisation, we’re always learning. It’s important to have other people coming in and helping us see the things we can’t, who can challenge us and make sure it was an honest piece of work.

“There were a lot of conversations about what difference we were making, and the results were really positive,” he said.

ImpactLab looked at a year’s worth of delivery, following 835 learners within ACE, to determine the social impact on the community.

Factors such as improved mental health, academic achievement, increased employment and increased drivers licensing were used to determine the value.

They found for every $1 Eastbay REAP invested in the programme, there was a social return to the region of $4.90.

Additional outcomes not included in the dollar value were acknowledged, such as increased community engagement, confidence, self-esteem, sense of belonging, skillset and social capital.

Mr Morrison said Eastbay REAP was excited to continue further research with ImpactLab to determine a dollar value for these aspects.

The ImpactLab report also commends the accessibility, co-design of activities, and enabling community-led and place-based programmes.

“By embedding community involvement in both the course design and delivery, Eastbay REAP’s ACE Learning Support Services accurately identify the learning needs and aspirations of the community and caters to the educational needs and cultural background of its learners,” the report says.

Mr Morrison and Eastbay REAP shared the results at the national REAP conference in Wellington last month.