The document discusses impact measurement and social value. It defines impact as any effects from an intervention, including both short and long term outcomes. It says impact should be measured to increase efficiency and effectiveness, for accountability, organizational learning, and obtaining funding. It notes the increasing importance of impact measurement due to scarce resources, competition, and demands from social investors. The Big Lottery Fund supports impact measurement through grant funding, guidance, and collaborative learning initiatives.

1. Impact measurement and social
value
Peter Bailey, Big Lottery Fund
Impact Conference, Exeter, 13th June

2. What is impact?
Any effects arising from an
intervention. This
includes immediate Impact
short-term outcomes as
well as broader and Outcomes
longer–term effects.
These can be positive or
negative, planned or
unforeseen.

3. Why measure impact?
• To increase impact (efficiency, effectiveness)
• For accountability to funders,
commissioners, sponsors, supporters, users
• For organisational learning – to enable
improvement
• For ‘proof’, evidence-building, winning new
funding or resources, promotion

4. Why now?
• Scarcity of (funding) resources
• Competition for public sector
contracts
• Pressure to benchmark, compare,
compete, prove
• New demands of social investors
• Technological advances

5. The BIG perspective
• Culture of evaluation, review and learning
• <10% may be spent on monitoring,
evaluation, learning in grant budgets
• Support contracts, signposting, advice,
guidance

6. BIG things
• Building Capabilities: up to 3% of grant to
be spent on developing organisational
capacity, such as support for
demonstrating impact.
• Learning for Impact: up to £50k to groups
of organisations to support collaborative
learning. Launch in Summer 2013.

7. Other things
• Inspiring Impact: aims to help voluntary
sector organisations across the UK get
better at measuring the impact of their
work www.philanthropycapital.org
• The Alliance for Useful Evidence:
champions the use of evidence in policy
and practice www.nesta.org.uk

8. Contact
Peter Bailey
Senior Policy & Learning Manager (Research)
Big Lottery Fund
peter.bailey@biglotteryfund.org.uk
020 7211 1778