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Since 2017, Old Fire Station, Oxford has been using the storytelling methodology to evaluate the impact of its work. Instead of setting outcomes to measure against, we decided to let those we work with identify outcomes for themselves by telling us a story. What changed for them? How did it happen? Why is it important?

We've found collecting, analysing and presenting stories to be a creative and participative process, which is both meaningful and enjoyable. It has shifted evaluation from a necessary add-on, to a central part of our work and who we are. Both the stories, and the learning that has emerged from them, have been rich and insightful. They have led us to think deeply about the way we work and have even resulted in us re-writing our mission statement.

We're now working with partners across Oxfordshire and beyond to change the way we evaluate projects. Read on to see how it works:

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Since 2017, Old Fire Station, Oxford has been using the storytelling methodology to evaluate the impact of its work. Instead of setting outcomes to measure against, we decided to let those we work with identify outcomes for themselves by telling us a story. What changed for them? How did it happen?

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WEMWBS is a world-leading, trusted tool for measuring mental wellbeing, used globally in commercial and non-commercial sectors. With scales containing either 14 or 7 questions, it offers proven, reliable data and user-friendly digital formats. Explore our licencing options today!

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Psychological Outcome Profiles (PSYCHLOPS) | King’s College London

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PSYCHLOPS is a short one page mental health outcome measure and can be used during the course of any psychotherapeutic intervention.

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Measuring your social impact: Theory of Change

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Microsoft Forms

Survey Monkey

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GAD 7 & PHQ 9 questionnaires for complex trauma, anxiety and depression

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GAD 7 & PHQ 9 questionnaires for complex trauma, anxiety and depression

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HM Treasury guidance on how to appraise and evaluate policies, projects and programmes.

Details

The Green Book is the government's guidance on options appraisal and evaluation.

From 1 November, Ministers of the Crown have a legal duty to have due regard to the environmental principles policy statement when making policy. Where the duty applies, it is relevant for appraisals and evaluations that are conducted in line with the Green Book. This duty will be reflected in the Green Book when the document is next updated. Further information can also be found in the guidance on Enabling a Natural Capital Approach. The Green Book also contains details of the other statutory duties with which appraisals must comply.

Useful resources

Previous editions of the Green Book

The previous 2003 edition of Green Book guidance is now withdrawn. For purposes of academic study and public information it may be found on the National Archives website.

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The Green Book: appraisal and evaluation in central government

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HM Treasury guidance on how to appraise and evaluate policies, projects and programmes.

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Photos of activities – see the difference in body language 

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Photos of activities – see the difference in body language 

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Photo project – exhibition to showcase impact

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Photo project – exhibition to showcase impact

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Storytelling and narrative to give context and feedback

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Storytelling and narrative to give context and feedback

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Set core outcomes – compare across projects and streams

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Set core outcomes – compare across projects and streams

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Questionnaires to measure health and wellbeing

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Questionnaires to measure health and wellbeing

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Wellbees is a corporate wellbeing platform that creates tailored workplace wellness programs to boost employee engagement, staff mental health & wellbeing

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Pulling together questions used in the past, filter by impact you want to measure

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Pulling together questions used in the past, filter by impact you want to measure

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How to create a Neighbourhood Plan: Your step by step roadmap guide - Locality Neighbourhood Planning

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Find out about each stage you need to go through in order to create your neighbourhood plan. The roadmap describes the plan making process so that you can understand each necessary statutory stage, without getting too bogged down in legislation.

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Advice Pro database tracks work and outcomes

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Advice Pro database tracks work and outcomes

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Norwich CC

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Participation data / in-person / quotations

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Participation data / in-person / quotations

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Dropping tokens in a box on the way in and out of session

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Dropping tokens in a box on the way in and out of session

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Wellbeing guidance for appraisal - supplementary Green Book guidance

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Wellbeing guidance for appraisal - supplementary Green Book guidance

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On page 52 of the PDF you will find the Appendix 1 "Measuring Adult Wellbeing". Scroll down to find the table containing the four standardised questions that you can use to create WELLBYs.

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The School of System Change has a library of free-to-access videos on Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning. 

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The School of System Change has a library of free-to-access videos on Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning. 

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Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning in Systems Change

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From October 2024 to February 2025, the School of System Change is hosting a practitioner-focused learning and practice series on Monitoring, Evaluation and…

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Three sector experts share reports, articles and projects that speak to using the Evaluation Principles.

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Our essential reads: Evaluation Principles in practice - CultureHive

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A collection of articles, reports and resources providing some helpful examples of what the Evaluation Principles can look like in practice.

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Re-thinking Evaluation with young people

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Re-thinking Evaluation with young people

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Article from Arts Professional that came via the Centre for Cultural Value

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Re-thinking evaluation with young people - Arts Professional

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Youth programme evaluation is typically a retrospective exercise, with a report produced at the end of a project. The Centre for Cultural Value’s Rob Eagle and Stephen Dobson advocate for a more participatory and reflective practice.

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Cultural Indicator Suite - Centre for Cultural Value

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Cultural Indicator Suite - Centre for Cultural Value

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Cultural Indicator Suite - Centre for Cultural Value

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The Cultural Indicator Suite captures the interconnected dimensions of cultural vitality at place level. Together, these indicators provide a framework for measuring and communicating the holistic, everyday cultural vitality of places, emphasising the impact of culture across social, civic, economic and wellbeing outcomes.

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HACT - Social Value for Housing Associations

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HACT - Social Value for Housing Associations

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Social Value for Housing Associations | HACT

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As experts in the housing sector we can ensure social value is embedded across your organisation to driving lasting, transformational impact in your communities.

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The Community Needs Index:  A blog from localtrust.org.uk 

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The Community Needs Index:  A blog from localtrust.org.uk 

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Community Needs Index: how to access and how it’s evolving

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Explore how the Community Needs Index has been used, what its next phase of development means, and how you can access the data.

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Interactive or informal techniques that make it easier and more engaging for people to share feedback and experiences.

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Approaches that track change over time, showing how individuals or groups progress and develop through engagement.

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Methods for gathering personal experiences, reflections, and qualitative insights to show the human impact behind the data.

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Frameworks and systems that track, quantify, or demonstrate the wider social impact of work and services.

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Structured tools and approaches used to measure outcomes, often using standardised questions or consistent frameworks.