YP⁴ is constructed as a social experiment, which is unprecedented in contemporary Australian social policy contexts.

·        Attention is being given (relatively equitably) to three types of evaluation activity: an outcome evaluation, an evaluation of the acts of joining up that occur in YP⁴ and a financial evaluation.

·        The methodology of the outcome evaluation centres on the existence of two groups, each of whom receives services in different ways. One group is called “J” for ‘joined up’: They receive joined up services from YP⁴ case managers. The second group, “S”, receive services in the standard way. YP⁴ evaluators are able to compare directly the employment and housing outcomes achieved by each group. Importantly, the allocation of young homeless jobseekers to S and J groups has, with a few exceptions, occurred randomly. This was made possible by the fact that there were more young homeless jobseekers in each of the catchment areas than places in YP⁴.

·        The outcome evaluation is being overseen by Dr. Marty Grace of Victoria University who is independent of all of the partner organisations, including the five government departments who are participating.

·        Ethical approval for the outcome evaluation has been formally granted by Victoria University Human Research and Ethics Committee

·        The financial evaluation includes both a cost-benefit analysis and a cost-effectiveness analysis. It is overseen by independent principal investigators from the Department of Economics and the Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research at the University of Melbourne. Professor Jeff Borland and his colleagues, Dr YiPing Tseng and Dr Roger Wilkins will undertake this work.

·        The evaluation of the ‘joining up’ process is participatory, organic and developmental. The trial manager, Louise Coventry, doubles as the principal investigator of this evaluation.