Cheers to a Festive Break

/in /by

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all our wonderful clients from this year, it is a pleasure to work with such outstanding people and provide meaningful evaluation services and data analysis. We look forward to working with new and existing clients next year.

In the spirit of the festive season, the Evaluator team will be taking a break to refresh and recharge during Christmas. Therefore, we would like to inform you that our office will be closed for the holiday period starting from Monday 23rd of December and will resume operations on Monday 6th of January.

We appreciate your understanding, and we assure you that we will return in the new year fully revitalised and ready to continue delivering our exceptional service.

Evaluation in action: Making Data Collection Simple and Effective for Our Clients

/in /by

At The Evaluator, we are committed to doing the best job we can for our clients. That means helping them to use data and making sure that they feel confident using data and collect enough. Small amounts of data can be helpful indicators of information, but having larger amounts means that you can trust your information.

Therefore, a big part of our work is carefully planning and supporting clients to maximise their ability to collect data.

Look for all opportunities to collect data as easily as possible

Consider all angles – where is a good place to get people to write something? Are there times in your programme where people will be waiting? Are there natural opportunities to ask questions and record answers?

Sometimes you might want a record of a change, and a photograph might be the best way. Data can be in the form of words, pictures, numbers, and more.

We do usually use at least one survey in each project, but we think carefully about the best place to use it.

How can your evaluation team help you to collect data?

We know all evaluators have slightly different approaches, but this is how we do it at The Evaluator:

– Weekly tracking of information, to help clients out, if we see things start to stall

– Spotting opportunities to visit in person

– Making visits in person as useful as possible – maximising our time

– Encouraging use by demonstrating how valuable the information can be – dashboards, data-driven decisions, etc.

And you know what, it works! In 2024/25, since July 2024 (which is the start of our year), we have supported our clients to collect over 750,000 pieces of data ready for our analysis. Analysis happens at different planned times in the year, but collecting data whilst it is fresh in people’s minds (and their experiences are still memorable) is a vital part of our organisation. We call it our company ‘rock’, as we all stand on that.

Blue graphic image with rocks, which says company rock - data collected in 2024/25 - since July 2024 The Evaluator has collected over 750,000 pieces of data for it's clients.

Evaluation In Action: Working With Volunteers

/in /by

The National Festival of Making took place on 6th and 7th July across Blackburn town centre and was supported by a wonderful team of volunteers, including an evaluation team of volunteers.

Volunteers

Each volunteer brought different skills to the festival, with some speaking multiple languages, helping the diverse audience with finding venues across the festival and being a friendly face to converse with. In fact, the team spoke the following languages; Persian, Urdu, French, Polish, Zulu, Bengali and more. What a skilled bunch!

The volunteers were a valuable support to our evaluation team. Over the festival weekend, they helped us to conduct surveys with festival attendees and gather valuable data and feedback, which supports funding for future events and helps the festival to make improvements year on year.

 

Artwork in church - festival of making

Photograph, above, reproduced from the National Festival of Making website. You can see more about the festival by clicking here.

At The Evaluator we enjoy working with volunteers to make the most of our clients resources.

 

Why not keep in touch if you want to know more about how volunteers could be included in your evaluation? Sign up for our mailing list below.

The Evaluator Mailing List

The Evaluator Mailing List, for updates and newsletters.

Please wait...

<span style="color: #339966;">Thank you for signing up. If you'd like to get in touch directly please email info@theevaluator.co.uk</span>