A choice of the following pre-conference workshops is offered in addition to the main conference programme, providing an opportunity for delegates to build their skills and deepen their understanding of the practice of evaluation. The pre-conference workshops will be held on 21 November at the Queens Hotel, Leeds .

Steven Johnson, Director
Alison Darlow, Principal Research Fellow
Policy Research Institute, Leeds Metropolitan University

The aim of this workshop is to enhance the skills and capabilities of people by developing or refreshing knowledge relating to effective processes for commissioning evaluation. The proposed approach to the workshop is informed by a number of key premises.

• The approach to commissioning evaluation needs to be developed so as to contribute to and promote the desired role and purpose of evaluation within the organisation.
• A well-specified and comprehensive brief is a key element in an effective commissioning process.
• The process of commissioning needs to be seen more broadly than simply a ‘technical’ matter of writing a brief and holding a competitive tendering exercise.

The workshop is structured into two half day modules. The modules are self contained so delegates can opt for one or both sessions

Module 1: An overview of commissioning evaluation
This session will provide an overview of the key issues to consider when commissioning evaluation. It will be delivered in two parts.

The first part will briefly consider: Why organisations may wish to evaluate? What should be evaluated and when? What are the types of main evaluation?

The second part of this module will consider a range of process issues that need to be considered when commissioning evaluation including: commissioning or procurement?; purpose/aims of commissioning?; developing an evaluation plan or programme; competition and commissioning; commissioning: some general principles; preparation: scoping the evaluation. This will provide the basis for discussions surrounding the approaches adopted by various organisations and what works best for whom?

Professor Elliot Stern
Professor of Evaluation Research, Lancaster University

This session will review the evolution of policy making and public management and how this shapes what evaluators are expected to do. It also considers the way evaluation is nowadays institutionalised within public agencies and government departments and how evaluation markets are managed - and the consequences these processes have for evaluation practice.

The session will consist of a mixture of presentations; questions and answers; and exercises.

Half day workshop – 14.00-16.30
Commissioning evaluation: A workshop to share good practice
Module 2: Developing an evaluation brief

Steven Johnson, Director
Alison Darlow, Principal Research Fellow
Policy Research Institute, Leeds Metropolitan University

The aim of this workshop is to enhance the skills and capabilities of people by developing or refreshing knowledge relating to effective processes for commissioning evaluation. The proposed approach to the workshop is informed by a number of key premises.

• The approach to commissioning evaluation needs to be developed so as to contribute to and promote the desired role and purpose of evaluation within the organisation.
• A well-specified and comprehensive brief is a key element in an effective commissioning process.
• The process of commissioning needs to be seen more broadly than simply a ‘technical’ matter of writing a brief and holding a competitive tendering exercise.

The workshop is structured into two half day modules. The modules are self contained so delegates can opt for one or both sessions  

Module 2: Developing an evaluation brief
The second module will focus on developing the evaluation brief.

The module will consider the 10 steps to take in commissioning evaluation. It will consider what good practice in developing evaluation briefs is and will draw on a range of guidelines and approaches developed by leading agencies.

There will be a practical exercise involving group work as part of this session.

Professor Elliot Stern
Professor of Evaluation Research, Lancaster University

This session will consider how to design evaluations and choose methods and techniques in evaluation in the context of different evaluation ‘types’. It will cover in particular the formulation of evaluation questions in relation to different ‘modes of evaluative enquiry’. The session will also revisit debates about qualitative and quantitative methods and ways of assuring evaluation quality.

The session will consist of a mixture of presentations; questions and answers; and exercises.

Anne Markiewicz,
Consultant, Anne Markiewicz and Associates

The development of a range of negotiation skills in program evaluation is essential to the achievement of successful outcomes from the process of program evaluation. The soft skills of communication, negotiation and problem solving have been recognised as even more important to the success of program evaluation than the technical skills of data collection and analysis.

This workshop will focus on the development of negotiation skills by evaluators and contract managers involved in program evaluation. A combination of models of learning will be used, including:

• Theoretical input regarding negotiation and mediation principles (in written material produced and disseminated to participants and a short didactic presentation at the commencement of the workshop)
• Application of theoretical principles to a number of simulated scenarios developed by the trainer, with guided feedback and reflection
• Discussion and guided reflection on real scenarios emanating from the practice of participants, with opportunities for learning from prior experiences within the group

The workshop will be suitable for both those new to program evaluation and those with experience.

Half day workshop – 14.00-16.30
How and why to include an economic component in your evaluation

Barbara Barrett
Lecturer, Centre for the Economics of Mental Health, Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London

The workshop will begin with the ‘why’; examining the rationale for including an economic component in an evaluation. The use of economic evaluation for policy making, planning services and commissioning will be reviewed and the importance and need to consider costs as well as outcomes will be argued. Attention will be given to areas of policy making that include economic evaluation as a matter of course, for example, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE).

Turning to the ‘how’; economic evaluation will then be explained from start to finish, beginning with its theoretical roots in welfare economics and giving a clear, simple and memorable definition. The methods of economic evaluation will be described:

• cost-effectiveness analysis,
• cost-consequences analysis,
• cost-utility analysis,
• cost-benefit analysis, and
• cost-minimisation analysis.

Each step in an economic evaluation will be shown: evaluation question, comparison group, perspective, costs and outcomes. For each step pragmatic examples from health, social care, criminal justice and transport evaluations will be used to illustrate both the methodological approach and any potential problems. Finally, the methods of analysis employed by economists will be outlined.