Short Abstract

Evaluation consulting in the impact sector presents a paradox, as evaluators must serve as both objective 'outsiders' and collaborative co-designers. This paper advocates for learning partnerships in education and youth services to mediate this tension.

Description

Evaluation consulting in the social impact sector embodies a paradox. Independent evaluators, influenced in part by the culture and ethos of private management consultancies such as the 'Big Three' and in part by the need to ensure objectivity, are encouraged to assume the role of the 'other' or 'outsider' in client-consultant relationships. Paradoxically, this very distance can foster transactional dynamics that undermine the collaborative conditions necessary for meaningful evaluation of social programmes. Evaluators systematically evaluate organisational practice but rarely face scrutiny of their own methodological assumptions, positional power, or contextual understanding. This one-way accountability becomes increasingly problematic as policy demands for evidence-based practice intensify. Without critical reflection on these consulting models, we risk institutionalising transactional rather than transformative approaches to evaluation.

This presentation draws on a critical literature review (Grant and Booth, 2009) of academic and grey literature to examine prevailing evaluation consulting models in the UK social impact sector. Anchored in Gaventa's Power Cube framework (Gaventa, 2006) and Blyde's consultant-client relationship typology (Blyde, 2008), it addresses two core questions: (a) What are the limitations and systemic risks of standard evaluation consulting arrangements, particularly regarding accountability gaps and epistemic asymmetries? and (b) Can “learning partnerships” offer a transformative alternative, redistributing power, embedding mutual accountability, and prioritising organisational learning alongside evaluative judgement?

I argue that learning partnerships, characterised by transparent negotiation of evaluator positionality and explicit capacity-building commitments, can address the fundamental power imbalances inherent in traditional consulting relationships. These partnerships are especially promising in sectors where power dynamics critically shape service quality, such as education, social care, and youth services. The presentation concludes by exploring why learning partnerships remain rare, despite their theoretical appeal, and examining the structural barriers to their design and implementation. It then proposes practical suggestions for evaluation commissioners and practitioners seeking to operationalise more equitable evaluation consulting approaches.