Preparing for Life\u00a0<\/em>is\u00a0<\/em>a community-led initiative operated by the Northside Partnership in North Dublin which was evaluated over a 8-year period (2008-2016) by the UCD Geary Institute<\/a>\u00a0under the direction of Dr. Orla Doyle. The\u00a0PFL\u00a0<\/em>programme aims to improve levels of school readiness in\u00a0several designated disadvantaged areas of Dublin, beginning during pregnancy and lasting until the children start school.<\/p>\n The purpose of the programme is to help parents develop skills to help their children in five domains of school readiness:<\/p>\n 2008-2016 Evaluation<\/span><\/p>\n The programme was evaluated extensively between 2008 and 2016 using a mixed methods approach incorporating both a longitudinal experimental design and a process evaluation. Results from the evaluation showed that the programme improved children’s school readiness at age 5 in terms of their cognitive development, physical wellbeing and motor development, social and emotional development, language development, and approaches to learning.<\/p>\n Click here<\/a> <\/span>fo<\/strong>r the final results from the 2008-2016\u00a0PFL\u00a0<\/em>evaluation<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Age 9 Follow-up Study<\/span><\/p>\n In 2019, Orla Doyle and the UCD Geary Institute will carry out a follow-up study of the Preparing for Life programme. This study will examine the impact of the programme now that the children are on average 9 years old (age 7-11).<\/p>\n Click here <\/a>to find out<\/span> more about the PFL Age 9 Follow-up Study.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n\n