Evaluation
In September 2010, the ITM unit hosted an evaluation event with the aim of offering a consistent and coherent approach to how the ESF ITM programme is evaluated, and to champion ESF’s role in gathering and spreading evidence of effective practice.
In the current economic climate, compelling evidence of successful interventions that demonstrate innovation, value for money and a positive impact on tackling employment and skills challenges are at the heart of the Government’s drive for achieving greater value from government-funded programmes and the European funds.
Projects, researchers and evaluators came together to champion ESF's role in gathering and spreading evidence of effective practice. Against the backdrop of a rapidly changing policy environment, hungry for new ideas and demonstration of what works, the ITM programme's 32 projects are uniquely placed to understand, record and tell their stories. As lessons from projects start to emerge, the event was an opportunity to firm up the evidence base and stimulate debate on different ways to substantiate the message. The event concluded with a clear message: there is more need than ever before for solid, compelling evidence of what works, and ITM is poised to make a unique contribution.
Inputs included:
- an overview of the European and domestic policy context
- an overview of effective evaluation, setting the context for ITM's role in using ESF to learn lessons
- linking cause and effect by the Ipswich SAM project, showing how the project is seeking to demonstrate the causal link between their work with people recovering from mental illness and employment outcomes
- social return on investment (SROI) in an employment context, with the SROI network showcasing the key issues in giving values to social impacts, and a practical case study from the FRC Group of their approach in practice
- evaluating the benefits of transnational working, giving a wealth of information on how to use work with overseas partners to understand policy options and evidence best practice, based on methods being promoted by European Commission consultants AEIDL
- insights from the DWP ESF Evaluation team on how their work is used in the policy-making process, and what policy makers are really looking for.
A full report on the event will appear on ESF-Works in due course. Meanwhile, the resources linked to above are available for immediate use, with an open invitation for questions and dialogue from all the speakers.
