Evaluation: The Institute for Economic and Social Inclusion

Introduction

The University of Sunderland’s Institute for Economic and Social Inclusion (IESI) is the evaluation and learning partner for the Sunderland Skills Inclusion Programme (SSIP). We are excited to work with all of the delivery partners to understand the delivery and impact of the Programme.

Our approach is one designed to work alongside all the partners, helping to draw out ‘what works’ and facilitate reflective practice throughout the programme. Regular meetings will facilitate the sharing of learning and inform decisions about delivery, as well as identifying additional resources and future funding opportunities, ensuring a sustainable impact on Sunderland and the wider region.

Our approach

Our evaluation methodology employs a participatory approach, integrating stakeholder feedback at every stage. This strategy ensures that our evaluations provide real-time insights and foster improvements throughout the programme’s lifecycle. By involving delivery partners and participants, we generate contextualised findings that yield practical recommendations, enhancing the learning process across all partners. Our approach not only gathers findings through traditional methods but also deepens the understanding of programme impacts, thereby supporting the development of future projects with a solid foundation of real world evidence.

By addressing key questions about who SSIP benefits, when, and how, we will help the delivery partners to maximise impact. This, coupled with our expertise in evaluation methods, means the learning can be used to adapt flexibly and effectively, ensuring our evaluation not only assesses but also enhances the overall programme delivery.

What does this mean for people taking part?

We will collect information that helps us to understand how the programme is working. This will involve questions (surveys or interviews) about what is working well, and any changes or improvements that could be made. We’re interested in whether the programme is having an impact on the people who take part, as well as how the delivery is going.

We’re committed to data protection and the privacy of participants, and full information about what data we collect, and how we process and store it will always be shared with the research tools that we use.

For more information