Evaluation

Where large amounts of financial and other investment are concerned the need for independent evaluation is paramount. Our senior staff have been doing this for two decades for Government departments and agencies and other public bodies.

The secret to an effective evaluation is that it be intelligently critical but also supportive and contributory. In a number of recent evaluations we have operated as a “critical friend” – identifying and developing new and highly constructive approaches to a wide variety of issues.

Summative evaluations can play a useful role in drawing a line under one-off initiatives but formative evaluations offer the chance to learn and improve as the programme is being implemented – thus providing much greater value and resulting in a more effective programme.

We specialise in ongoing – sometimes benchmarked – formative evaluations, offering independence and experience which can bring extremely valuable external insights into high-cost initiatives. Examples include formative, summative and longitudinal evaluations of European Social Fund (ESF) activities in various regions; formative assessments of pilot training programmes; evaluations of policy implementation and; assessments of careers advice and guidance initiatives.