Introduction to Arts Evaluation

• Spaces are limited so early booking is encouraged.
• Bookings will close at 5pm on Friday 20 September 2024 or when the course reaches full capacity.
• For our Terms and Conditions, please click here.

Ages 18+

Course Dates & Times

Wednesday evenings on 25 September, 2, 9, 16 October 2024
6.30pm–8.30pm, BST (UTC+1)

About Introduction to Arts Evaluation

This four-week online evening course is for those working in the arts and cultural sector, who want to learn how to communicate the impact of their work in a way that is effective, creative and most of all accessible.

The course, which is delivered over two-hour online sessions, will introduce you to the importance of arts evaluation and how to plan and develop your own.

You will learn how to articulate the impact of your project to your colleagues, stakeholders, funders and communities and will gain an understanding of ‘Theory of Change’ models and how to use these. 

Who is the course for?

• This course is an introductory level course, so no previous experience is necessary. It is ideal for producers, project managers, project assistants and those working in the cultural sector who want to either begin to learn about evaluation or develop their creative approach to evaluation.  
• There is no upper age limit on this course. We encourage and welcome participants from all ages 18 and over.

What can I expect?

Over the course of four online sessions, you will gain the skills and confidence to design and develop an embedded and creative evaluation approach for your creative projects. The key learning outcomes include: 

• Gain a critical understanding of value and learn how to evaluate your own projects.  
• Understanding how to design and use ‘Theory of Change’ Models & Evaluation Frameworks 
• Learn which evaluation methods might best suit your projects 
• Learn how to embed creative approaches, and co-creation where appropriate, into your evaluations 

Course Fee

£150

• Spaces are limited so early booking is encouraged.
• Bookings will close at 5pm on Friday 20 September 2024 or when the course reaches full capacity.
• For our Terms and Conditions, please click here.

Eligibility

• For everyone aged 18+. There is no upper age limit on this course. We encourage and welcome participants from all ages 18 and over.
• Participants must have sufficient English language skills to cope with course demands.

Online Short Courses Requirements

All sessions will take place online using Zoom. A Zoom link will be sent to you in advance of the course start date with further instructions.

To participate in online classes you will need the following:

• An email address
• A reliable internet connection
• A laptop/tablet/desktop computer with a microphone and camera (most have these included)
• Speakers/headphones (the speakers in your laptop/tablet/computer should be sufficient)
• A fully updated web browser able to use the most up to date version of Zoom, or a fully updated Zoom client

If you have any questions regarding joining one of our online courses please contact us.

About the Course Tutor

The course is taught by Dr Maia Mackney and Dr Nicola Hatton.

Dr Maia Mackney is a Postdoctoral Innovation Fellow specialising in evaluation at Guildhall School of Music & Drama. She is chair of the Evaluation Working Group at Guildhall's 'Institute for Social Impact Research in the Performing Arts'. Maia is responsible for embedding evaluation across the institution to improve School's processes of reflection and learning culture. Maia is particularly passionate about creative and co-created evaluation and research methods and has recently co-authored a chapter entitled 'Liberating the Frustrated Evaluator' which will be part of the Disrupt Toolkit (Mackney M and Valentina Orru, December 2022).

Prior to this she co-authored an article entitled 'Embracing the messiness: a creative approach to participatory arts evaluation' (Mackney, M and Dr Toby Young Journal for Cultural Trends, 2021). Her previous post-doctoral research at Guildhall, funded by the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, explored Barbican Creative Learning’s National Development Programme. 

Maia has taught cultural policy, research methods and socially engaged arts practice at Guildhall School of Music & Drama, Winchester University and Royal Holloway University of London. She has worked as an independent consultant, researcher and participatory arts practitioner with a variety of arts organisations, funders and educational institutions.

Dr Nicola Hatton is an arts researcher who specialises theatre, qualitative research and evaluation design. She has led on the evaluation of a number of projects across the arts, heritage and education sectors, and is particularly experienced in supporting clients to collaborate with communities.

Nicky is an Associate Consultant with The Audience Agency, where she specialises in participatory and community-based work. Prior to being a research and evaluation consultant, Nicky lectured in performance at York St John University. She has a PhD in theatre and performance and is the author of a number of publications on art and care including the book Performance and Dementia: a cultural response to care. She has also held community and education roles at Hampstead Theatre and Arcola Theatre, leading on theatre projects with schools, elders’ groups, hospitals and care homes.