An evaluation of the first two years of the Community Development Programme - Summary

This is a brief summary of the Community Development Programme (CDP) evaluation. It draws on the community fieldwork and administrative data evaluation reports.

The CDP is the Australian Government’s employment and community development programme serving people living in remote Australia. The CDP was introduced in July 2015 and was designed to improve outcomes in remote communities by increasing participation in work-like activities, improving employability, and providing sustainable work transitions for participants.

The evaluation of the CDP has several components.

• A community fieldwork report undertaken by Winangali in partnership with Ipsos (The many pathways of the Community Development Programme). This report presents community views on the CDP, based on surveys with community members, CDP providers and stakeholders across eight remote communities.
• An administrative data report undertaken by the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (The Community Development Programme: Evaluation of Participation and Employment Outcomes). This report examines participation and employment outcomes over the first two years of the programme.

The two reports capture evidence on different aspects of the programme and, read together, provide a broad understanding of the early impacts of the CDP on participants and their communities.