Revealing Social Returns of Rural Workforce Programmes: SROI for 5 work-based learning programmes

New Zealand's rural sectors face critical workforce shortages while many young people struggle to find meaningful employment pathways. Food and Fibre Centre of Vocational Excellence (CoVE) and the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) identified five work-based learning programmes that could address both issues but needed evidence of their effectiveness to inform future funding decisions.

We designed a comprehensive mixed-methods evaluation that balanced rigorous economic analysis with rich qualitative insights. We:

All five programmes delivered positive social returns on investment, with ratios ranging from 3.5 to 17.0. The Generation Programme, Whangarei A&P Farm Internship Programme and Tokomairiro Training Forest Pathways - all serving young people with significant barriers to education and employment - yielded the highest returns. 

Pastoral care emerged as a critical success factor. Face-to-face support, literacy assistance, and connections to specialised services created environments where participants thrived. The Generation Programme demonstrated particularly effective practice by incorporating whānau and kaumātua involvement, strengthening cultural connections alongside employment skills. 

We identified significant threats to programme sustainability despite their strong outcomes. Most operated with insecure, short-term funding arrangements. Their classification outside the tertiary education system prevented access to more stable funding streams and limited their ability to offer apprenticeships. 

Programmes using earn-as-you-learn models proved more accessible to disadvantaged youth than those offering student allowances, which often failed to cover living costs. This finding has important implications for programme design, particularly when targeting young people facing multiple barriers. 

Our evidence delivered transformative insights for the Food and Fibre CoVE and MPI. 

These findings now provide a robust foundation for policy and funding decisions that can strengthen New Zealand's rural workforce while creating meaningful opportunities for young people who might otherwise struggle to find sustainable employment pathways.