HEACF: case studies of good practice

Evaluation and sustainability

All HEIs running the HEACF have set objectives for use of their allocation - even if only within the bid for the allocation in the first instance. In order to develop a cohesive and comprehensible strategy for use of the funding, there must be some basic objectives: percentage increase in volunteering opportunities, targeting non-participating students, increase in enquiries, and positive coverage in local media. All of these objectives need to be revisited at key stages during the lifetime of the HEACF in order to evaluate success and/or failure of certain elements of a programme - or the 'distance travelled' by an HEI's volunteering team.

Parameters for the measurement of success need to be set for HEACF practitioners to understand the scale of their achievements, and of their lack of achievement where applicable. It is through simple evaluation procedures that success can be effectively measured.

The HEACF has not ended, but it is vital for HEIs to consider ongoing evaluation (if they have yet to do so) in order to have a clear plan for the continuation or development of volunteering programmes beyond the life of the HEACF. Case studies within this section set out methods for conducting evaluation, and give an indication of areas to explore when devising an evaluation strategy.

Sustainability goes hand in hand with evaluation. For example, although a particular schools mentoring programme may have outstanding success in terms of improved retention and examination results, it is unsustainable if the schools are based 50 miles away from the student mentors, and rely wholly on the HEACF allocation to enable students to travel to attend mentoring sessions. Sustainability in this case may be achieved by applying for new sources of external revenue - maybe from educational trusts or other volunteering charities.

It is also useful to look at the reliance of some HEACF-initiated projects on full-time staff members. Would it be more useful for the longevity of volunteering to give students ownership of projects? Where is the job development and continued job satisfaction for those staff members if their knowledge is not transferred to students?

Finally, a strategic look at sustainability issues can lead to important infrastructure developments within volunteering at HEIs. One of the case studies shows how the creation of a central support service for departmental volunteering projects has helped to improve the profile of activities, provide a forum for development, and ensure a firm foundation for the future through the rationalisation of resources.

This section contains six diverse explorations of the themes of evaluation and sustainability.

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