Evaluation Tender Opportunity

Overview

Hall for Cornwall is currently delivering our Community Culture Club, a project initially funded by a combination of Cornwall & Isles of Scilly’s Shared Prosperity Fund Investment Programme as lead investor alongside corporate and publicly donated match funding.  We are seeking to appoint an experienced and enthusiastic evaluator to provide support, guidance and collaborative working with the project team. The evaluator will devise and implement our Evaluation Strategy and complete a final evaluation report in line with the Shared Prosperity Fund guidance.  

•  The evaluator will offer a methodology for evaluation of Community Culture Club and the opportunity to develop a clear legacy to the investment incorporating learning opportunities which have arisen from the project.  
• The evaluator will provide support, coordination and regular opportunity to monitor and provide feedback on Community Culture Club in general terms and the success of the strategies implemented by the Hall for Cornwall team. 
• The evaluator is responsible for coordinating data analysis and feedback for Community Culture Club and presenting evaluation documents for internal use, as well as an impact and commendations-led document for wider cultural circulation. (This will be in collaboration with the team delivering the programme, to provide details of groups, recommendations for case studies and group evaluation and feedback opportunities) 

Project Status 

At the close of the 23/24 financial year, we will have welcomed circa 5,000 visitors to our venue through the Community Club Programme, 2,000 of whom are new to any live performance. In addition, we have welcomed 2,000 under-7s for their formative experiences of theatre during this time. 

Evaluator Responsibilities 

Responsibilities   

1. To assess how the Community Culture Club has delivered against the project aims, Shared Prosperity Fund Outcomes, and Key Performance Indicators. 
2. To develop tools for on-going evaluation of project impact in consultation with key project team members   
3. To carry out two cross-team reflection meetings with the wider HfC team to draw out and distil learning during the project, building key recommendations for HfC going forward. 
4. To carry out relevant individual or group interviews with project team, volunteers, project partners and participants   
5. To assess any unexpected outcomes, and draw out models of best practice   
6. To make recommendations in terms of legacy and practice improvements to further support HfC’s future community engagement.  
7. To produce a final report and recommendations for use internally and externally   
8. To develop and lead on an informative workshop at the end of the project to share project learning with relevant sectoral stakeholders and HfC staff / volunteers as appropriate 

Questions the evaluator will help us answer 

What are the findings regarding barriers to accessing theatre activity in Cornwall? 

How effectively has the Community Culture Club addressed these barriers? 

How effective has our intervention been within targeted postcode areas? 

How successful has the development of HfC’s Under-7s strategy been? 

What has been the impact of satellite performance activity on individuals within target postcode areas? 

What has been the impact of our Community Culture Club on booking activity for people introduced to HfC through this programme? 

What has been the impact on targeted groups of being involved in performance activity? 

To what extent have effective community partnerships been established? 

How effective has community culture club activity been in increasing daytime footfall across Hall for Cornwall? 

How have transport issues and resolutions been identified, tested, and addressed? What are the key recommendations for supporting a rural dispersed travel plan? 

All evaluation will include reference to the following best practice and refer to HFC’s Evaluation Strategy. It will ensure that the review and evaluation is compliant with relevant standards and codes of conduct including:  

• Shared Prosperity Fund evaluation guidelines  
• Inspiring Learning for All Framework  
• Market Research Society Code of Conduct  
• UK Evaluation Society Good Practice Guidelines  
• The Data Protection Act 1998   
• The Equality Act of 2010  

Qualifications for the evaluator role 

• Proven track record of arts project evaluation   
• Previous experience of evaluating publicly funded projects   
• High level of written and verbal communication and advocacy skills   
• Demonstrable report writing and presentation skills   
• Knowledge of community-engaged practice   
• Knowledge of national agendas in relation to arts participation   
• Previous experience of facilitating group reflection sessions  

Timescale for appointment and fee 

Applications due into HFC by 12 noon on the 1st March. 

Applications are expected to be submitted via email to Getcreative@hallforcornwall.org.uk 

Successful applicants will be invited to interview on the 4th March and either appointed or informed of unsuccessful outcome by the 5th March. 

The evaluator will begin work in April 2024 and the evaluation will conclude following the conclusion of the project in August 2024* 

 *Please note that we have applied for an extension of the project which would secure an additional fee to continue the evaluation until March 2025 – this will be communicated with the successful applicant as soon as possible. Applicants should indicate their availability to continue to the revised project end date, should this funding be awarded. 

The role will require frequent communication with the HfC project team and a number of onsite meetings to agree strategies and feedback on activities. 

The scope of the contract is circa £12,000, to include all expenses. (Should the project be extended, the fee would be reflective of the additional months of evaluation until March 2025) 

Reporting to 

Deputy Creative Director, Hall for Cornwall.  

Application / Tender 

Please send a CV and covering letter and tender response document, detailing the following:  

• A methodology and programme statement which addresses the project aims and evaluator responsibilities. This should be short and succinct with clear waymarking in terms of a timeline. 
• Outline of previous relevant experience including CV.  
• A breakdown of the fee including number of days, expenses and materials. 
• Details of two referees. 

Applications should be no more than 6 pages of A4 in length.  

Applications to be sent to Helen Tiplady, Deputy Creative Director (Getcreative@hallforcornwall.org.uk)  by 12 noon on the 1st March 2024