Our evaluation services take a participatory approach, focussing less on numbers of social media like, or the number of participants at an event, and more about the impact for an individual or community.
What is participatory evaluation?
It’s a people-first approach to evaluation that uses engaging + accessible tools and exercises in both group and individual settings, to support participants in feeling less inhibited about sharing their experiences and expressing their true feelings. This approach supports as many voices as possible to contribute, and also involves them in the design of the evaluation process. This allows you to really understand the experience of participants and impact of your project.
What does this look like in practice?
Evaluation is the process of understanding how (or if!) a process has had impact. Rigorous evaluation improves the design and delivery of future programmes and informs strategy and decision-making. However, impact can mean different things to different people, and we believe it’s vital that participants are involved in deciding what impact means to them. In doing so, we capture meaningful stories of change.
We co-design the process with participants, to ensure we’re measuring what truly matters to them. Using engaging, accessible tools and interactive exercises, we create a safe space for individuals and groups to express their experiences, feelings, and insights.
Our Evaluation Services in Practice
To deliver a rich and nuanced understanding of a project’s outcomes, we combine participatory tools with rigorous research techniques, including:
Data Analysis
Identifying trends and patterns in both quantitative and qualitative data
Interactive Evaluation Workshops
Facilitated group sessions that encourage collaboration, reflection, and shared learning
Key Stakeholder Interviews
Gaining expert perspectives through in-depth conversations with individuals directly involved
Surveys
Collecting structured feedback from diverse participant groups to assess perceptions and outcomes
Historical Comparison
Contextualising your current progress by analysing your previous impact and projects
Data Analysis
Identifying trends and patterns in both quantitative and qualitative data
Interactive Evaluation Workshops
Facilitated group sessions that encourage collaboration, reflection, and shared learning
Key Stakeholder Interviews
Gaining expert perspectives through in-depth conversations with individuals directly involved
Surveys
Collecting structured feedback from diverse participant groups to assess perceptions and outcomes
Historical Comparison
Contextualising your current progress by analysing your previous impact and projects
Our Evaluation Services in Practice
We have worked locally and nationally with partners ranging from county councils to the national school meals service. Some of our previous examples include:
Get In Touch
Reach out to the Food Matters team to find out more about what we do, get involved or to collaborate with us on a future project at [email protected]
