An independent evaluation found that after four years, there was no clear evidence that the programme had any serious effect.
A 2016 study by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government concluded there was no clear evidence that the programme had any serious effect and that ministers may have underestimated the scale of the problems.
With no clear evidence that the programme is working, and serious concerns raised by teachers, local authorities and teaching unions, it is time for politicians to abandon their blind faith in free schools and listen to the experts.
However, a devastating study concludes that after four years there was no clear evidence that the programme had any serious effect, despite persistent claims by politicians that it had "turned around" the lives of tens of thousands of families and saved over a billion pounds.
There is some weak evidence that the Programme may have increased enrolment in the youngest children.
Overall, there is no evidence that the Programme has had an impact on child health indicators.
Third, only in the Kisii programme was there evidence that the programme responded to the felt needs of the user organisation, perhaps contributing to a supportive user environment (Table 1).
Positive outcomes were found across all geographical regions in the study, and there is some evidence that the programme effects are larger now than during the pilot phase of the programme five years ago.
Ten of the 11 participants completing questionnaires at follow-up said they would be willing to help run similar groups in the future for others newly diagnosed with MD, providing further evidence that the programme of peer support was beneficial for them and, with their assistance as future course leaders, could be rolled out to others.
But there is evidence that the expensive programmes tend to benefit only a handful of farmers who can participate in the programmes and the traders involved.
