An independent evaluation was commissioned by the Department for Education’s Innovation Fund in July 2017. The evaluation was undertaken by Opcit Research and University of Central Lancashire with a remit to assess the impact of programme delivery and processes through which impact was achieved for 125 women through seven Pause Practices.
The evaluation found that the Pause programme had a positive and significant impact on the women that it engaged with. It evidenced the programme was effective at reducing the number of pregnancies and that the cost of delivering Pause to these women was likely to be offset. The evaluation concluded that this would deliver a net cost savings for Local Authorities of ‘between £1.2m and £2.1m per year after the 18-month Pause programme’.