An independent evaluation into Jigsaw’s model and outcomes highlights positive quality of life and job satisfaction outcomes for Jigsaw participants.
Over the last two years, Jigsaw has engaged an independent research team from Flinders University to evaluate the effectiveness of the Jigsaw model, and the outcomes it creates for people with disability.
Why an independent evaluation?
Since 2014, Jigsaw’s “prepare for work, through work” model has trained and transitioned people with disability into mainstream employment. We know that we’ve had a lot of success: from a tiny outfit with one customer and two employees with disability, we have completed our national expansion and now support over 600 people with disability across Australia to prepare for employment. We have employed 217 people at award-wage and worked with local and national employers to transition people with disabilities into a range of industries including insurance, financial services, FMCG, local and state government, healthcare and more.
After nearly 10 years of impact, we believed the key elements of Jigsaw’s model (a pathway approach, integrated work experience from the outset, a focus on soft skills training, and ongoing support after transition) led to better outcomes than traditional disability employment approaches.
An evaluation would tell us what was working well at Jigsaw, what we could improve, and whether or not our belief held true.
The evaluation process
Claire Hutchinson and June Alexander from Flinders University analysed Jigsaw’s model and compared it to other approaches, both nationally and internationally. Claire, June and their team ran focus groups and interviews with Jigsaw trainees, paid trainees, and other staff as well as family members and people who have transitioned into mainstream employment with Jigsaw. They identified the important aspects of the Jigsaw model and the outcomes these create, and developed a theory of change for Jigsaw. They developed survey tools and combined survey results with feedback from interviews and Jigsaw’s organisational data to evaluate Jigsaw’s performance against the identified outcomes. They made recommendations for how we can increase and protect the quality and sustainability of Jigsaw’s model into the future.
Thank you to Claire, June, and the Flinders team, and to the 140+ members of the Jigsaw community who contributed their time and feedback during the process.
What did the evaluation tell us?
The evaluation looked at employment outcomes (both award-wage jobs for people with disability in Jigsaw, and sustained open employment) and quality of life as the main outcomes from Jigsaw’s model.
Employment outcomes
- 238 people with disability have achieved an employment outcome through Jigsaw, with another 430 currently preparing for employment with Jigsaw Academy (data at August 2024).
- Of the 117 placements into open employment the team looked at, 77.8% were continuing.
- 63.3% of placements had been sustained for at least 12 months, (excluding short-term contracts and internships).
- 85.4% of paid trainees agreed or strongly agreed that they received fair pay for their work at Jigsaw.
- 70.3% of trainees and 72.5% of paid trainees reported that they were satisfied with their work situation all or most of the time.
Quality of life outcomes
Jigsaw participants and their family members most frequently mentioned the following personal outcomes:
- Increased social connections
- Developing transferable skills
- Improved confidence, self-esteem and self-belief
- Improved wellbeing, quality of life and happiness
- Sense of belonging and acceptance
- Sense of purpose
- Feelings of competence
Areas for improvement
The evaluation also highlighted areas for improvement. For example, demand for paid traineeships outstrips the availability of work in Jigsaw’s business, and many people leave Jigsaw Academy before they secure a paid traineeship. Because people feel so well supported at Jigsaw and enjoy the working environment, many are reluctant to transition to mainstream employment. We also need to strengthen Jigsaw Connect to support more transitions sustainably.
The evaluation report brings the areas for improvement together in a series of recommendations.
What will Jigsaw do now?
Jigsaw and parent not-for-profit, Fighting Chance, have set up two working groups to implement the recommendations from the evaluation report. The first group is made up of Jigsaw’s leadership team and focuses on Jigsaw’s operations to look at improvements to the model and to Jigsaw’s long-term sustainability. The second is made up of staff across Jigsaw and Fighting Chance to ensure we are capturing all the data and community feedback we need to measure our impact into the future and continuously improve.
We will also celebrate! We couldn’t be more proud of how satisfied Jigsaw paid trainees are in their jobs, and how much personal growth they have seen during their time at Jigsaw. It is also a testament to the strength of the Jigsaw community that over 140 people invested their time, energy and contribution to this evaluation, which will support Jigsaw’s future strategy and direction.
Want to know more?
You can access the full evaluation documents on the Flinders University website.
Stage 1&2 report: an evidence base for Jigsaw’s model and theory of change development
Stage 3 report: evaluation of Jigsaw’s model and outcomes
Stage 3 report easyread summary
Have comments or questions?
Please get in touch with alessandra@fightingchance.org.au
About Jigsaw
Jigsaw is a social enterprise that provides an innovative pathway to mainstream employment for people with disability. By embedding a comprehensive skill-based training program within our commercial document and data management business, Jigsaw enables people with disability to achieve their employment goals at their own pace. Jigsaw’s holistic approach starts from the very basics of core work skills and supports trainees all the way through to transition to open employment with ongoing support and coaching once they have transitioned. Jigsaw is located in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Canberra.