This blog series explores our recently completed project, in partnership with Moore Kingston Smith (MKS), to develop an impact framework for a cohort of community-based project award-holders. In this final post, we examine…
The Outcomes
Across the five projects, a total of 37 outcomes were reported as being experienced by participants, their family members or staff on the projects. These were wide-ranging, reflecting the variety of interventions being evaluated. However, there were a number of shared outcomes across all of the projects. These included:
- reduced social isolation;
- improved confidence;
- improved mental health;
- improved physical health;
- improved relationships with loved ones.
Identifying a common outcome set for the projects was difficult however, owing to the wide spectrum of participant types and individual objectives agreed at the outset of each project. Each project resulted in unique outcomes and their bespoke impact models reflected this, providing detailed information on the social value of each outcome. The models have given the organisations a robust method for reporting on their project’s total social value and some organisations have already started engaging in conversations with partner organisations and funders, using the findings from the model.
The evidence did show that all the projects are creating significant positive change for the participants and the organisations involved all reported that the training and bespoke model has equipped them with the knowledge and tools to better understand and communicate their impact. The process has also helped the organisations think differently about how the impact of their work can be measured and reported, moving beyond numbers and statistics and putting the participants’ experience at the heart of their impact measurement – a cornerstone of good impact practice.
With grants becoming more and more competitive, we will certainly use this evidence in applications and it will hopefully give us the edge over others
Hannah Griffiths, Independent Arts
The process was a great opportunity for us as a funder to learn more about the practical impacts of our funded projects and to explore new ways of supporting our award holders.
This has moved beyond data capture – from pure numbers to thinking about what impact really means
Ben Pearce, Paintings in Hospitals
To find out more about how MKS can help charities measure and manage impact, you can contact them for a free two-hour consultation at [email protected] and if you’d like to see if you’re eligible for capability funding support, do please contact us.
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