Short Abstract

A panel session of evaluators working in different strata of evaluation in programmes designed to promote the development of innovative place-based interventions. Each will discuss how their work is shaped by their stratum and how this corresponds to each of this year’s conference subthemes.

Description

It is not uncommon for there to be different strata of evaluation in programmes designed to promote the development of innovative place-based policy and practice through inclusive collaboration between different stakeholders and communities. Each stratum has a specific role, responding to each of this year’s conference subthemes in their own ways. An example being the Local Policy Innovation Partnerships (LPIP) funded by Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), and Innovate UK. The programme includes four local partnerships based in each of the four nations and a national coordinating hub. The programme aim is to create a step change in the quality and impact of the evidence created by universities and their local place partners to support place-based policy and practice innovation.

In this round table discussion we bring together evaluators involved in the Local Policy Innovation Partnerships working in different roles including:

• National independent evaluator responsible for developing and implementing the overarching evaluation framework and programme assessment

• Experienced evaluator based in the Strategic Coordinating Hub for LPIPs whose role is support the development of evaluation capabilities and understanding of the distinctiveness of place-based evaluation.

• LPIP leader and evaluator who is closely involved in building capability within local policymaking, co-producing evidence with communities and service users, and using participatory and user-centred methods that support reflection and learning.

Panel members will provide their reflections on:

• Importance of building trust both professionally methodologically and how to measure it as a key intermediary outcome and potential indicator of future sustainability

• Trust is an enabling condition to explore policy and programme effectiveness. Trust between partners, trust between evaluators and participants, and trust within communities shaped:

o Data quality

o Engagement levels

o Partnership stability

o The credibility of findings

• Alignment of and choices around perspective and approach adopted depending on where you are positioned as an evaluator

• The role of evaluation in supporting adaptive programme management and learning in placed-based innovation programmes

• The necessity of contextualised evaluation in for place-based systems?

• Evaluators as learning partners, enabling sensemaking rather than auditors?

• The need to build evaluative capacity as a core output. Evaluation activity should be:

o A capacity building exercise

o A route to strengthen strategic clarity

o A way to improve day to day decision making

o A tool for building internal cultures of reflection

• How to overcome challenges related to Data Quality, Infrastructure Gaps, and the Limits of Measurement. In place-based work, focused on sub-regions, evaluators often have to:

o Work creatively with incomplete data

o Build new baseline measures

o Use qualitative insights to compensate for gaps

o Advocate for long term infrastructure strengthening

• Supporting and engendering evaluative thinking when engaging with different communities and stakeholders including preparation to be able to evidence of impact co-produced initiatives.

The format will be each panel give a brief presentation of no more than 3 minutes to maximise time for a chaired discussion.