Measuring What Matters: Bringing Communities Together to Rethink Outcome Measurement.

How do we know whether community-based health and wellbeing initiatives are making a difference? More importantly, how can we measure what really matters to the people who use them?

These questions brought together over 50 practitioners, researchers, commissioners, community organisations and people with lived experience to a knowledge exchange event in Oxford exploring meaningful and inclusive approaches to outcome measurement.

The event was hosted in partnership with Sarah Cassidy, Head of Inclusion and Learning, and Will Long, Storytelling Manager, from the Old Fire Station (OFS), and supported by the social prescribing team at the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences (Debra Westlake, Stephanie Tierney, Marta Santillo, Emilie Op de Beeck). It provided an opportunity for participants from across Oxfordshire and beyond to share experiences, challenge current approaches and develop ideas for improving how the impact of community-based health and wellbeing services is understood.

A day of shared learning

The event combined presentations, interactive discussions, experiential activities and networking, creating opportunities for participants to learn from one another and reflect on their own evaluation practices.

The morning began with facilitated small- and large-group discussions exploring what participants understood by meaningful and inclusive outcome measurement, and the barriers that often prevent evaluation from capturing what matters most to communities.

A presentation on Storytelling as an approach to outcome measurement was provided by Will Long from the OFS. He introduced the principles of using this evaluation method, developed by OFS,  to understand impact beyond traditional metrics. This was followed by a lively question-and-answer panel with representatives from organisations using storytelling in practice. They shared their experiences of implementing this approach, the challenges they had encountered and the insights it had provided into the impact of their work. The panel highlighted that, while storytelling is resource-intensive, it can generate rich insights and meaningful benefits for both storytellers and those collecting the stories. They emphasised the importance of creating safe, welcoming environments, including sharing food, to help people feel comfortable talking about their experiences. The panel also emphasised undertaking appropriate risk assessment and providing support where sensitive issues may arise, and presenting stories in accessible formats, such as audio recordings, to reduce barriers to engagement.

A highlight of the day was a delicious vegan lunch prepared by Damascus Rose Kitchen. More than simply providing refreshments, the shared meal created a welcoming and informal space for delegates to continue conversations, make new connections and strengthen existing relationships. Bringing people together around food reinforced the collaborative spirit of the event and demonstrated the important role that shared meals can play in fostering community, trust and meaningful knowledge exchange.

After lunch, participants heard from two funders, who offered valuable insight into the commissioning perspective. This session explored the increasing appetite among funders for more meaningful and inclusive forms of evaluation, while acknowledging the practical challenge of balancing innovative approaches with the accountability and reporting requirements placed upon funding organisations.

The rest of the afternoon focused on practical application. Delegates participated in an interactive roundtable session, selecting two of four hands-on workshops that introduced creative tools for meaningful measurement. These included: Moodscope, Cards on the Table, CIRCLE and a deeper discussion with funders. These activities gave participants the opportunity to experience different approaches first-hand and consider how they might be applied within their own organisations.

Throughout the day, participants contributed to facilitated discussions, ideas boards (see image) and a live graphic recording, capturing examples of good practice, challenges and opportunities for future collaboration.

What makes measurement meaningful?

Discussions highlighted a shared desire to move beyond evaluation approaches that focus solely on reporting requirements. Participants emphasised the importance of approaches that support learning, reflect the experiences of people using services and value the knowledge of those delivering them.

There was strong support for approaches that:

• prioritise learning alongside accountability;
• place people with lived experience at the centre of evaluation;
• encourage reflection and continuous improvement;
• engage a wide range of stakeholders through open dialogue; and
• combine qualitative and quantitative evidence to provide a richer understanding of impact.

At the same time, participants recognised the practical challenges organisations face. While funders are increasingly supportive of more meaningful approaches to evaluation, many continue to require standardised outcome measures. This is for two reasons: firstly, to meet their own reporting obligations and secondly, in order to compare organisations’ impact and support decision making about distribution of funds. Discussions focused on how organisations can balance these requirements while ensuring evaluation remains relevant, inclusive and useful.

Learning from one another

Participants emphasised the need to recognise the complexity of people's lives and the non-linear nature of people’s journeys. No single measure will suit everyone, and meaningful change is often gradual. Small, incremental changes can be significant, even when standardised scores show little or no improvement. In addition, it was noted that changes from an intervention or programme can go beyond an individual and may impact family members, but traditional measures may fail to capture this extended impact.

One of the strongest messages from the day was the value of collaboration. Smaller community organisations highlighted how learning from the experiences of larger organisations gave them greater confidence to adopt meaningful approaches to outcome measurement and advocate for them when working with funders.

The event strengthened relationships between community organisations, researchers, commissioners and practitioners, providing space to exchange ideas, build new partnerships and identify opportunities for future collaboration.

Looking ahead

Interest in the event exceeded expectations with demand reaching almost 80 requests for booking of 50 places. Evaluation feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with over 90% of delegates agreeing or strongly agreeing that the event met its objectives.

40 delegates signed up to remain involved in future activities. Participants identified several priorities for taking the work forward, including establishing a community of practice to share resources and learning, holding regular networking events, and working collaboratively with funders to develop a more meaningful and inclusive measurement framework that complements traditional outcome measures.

The enthusiasm and openness to share experiences, demonstrated throughout the day, showed a need and an appetite for change. There are no quick or easy solutions to the challenge of measuring what matters. It is a complex issue that has generated debate and innovation over many years. However, the event demonstrated a willingness to learn from one another, question existing approaches and work collaboratively towards more meaningful and inclusive ways of understanding impact.

By continuing to work together, participants hope to develop practical approaches to evaluation that better capture the real impact of community-based health and wellbeing initiatives while meeting the needs of funders, commissioners and the communities they serve.

Figure 1: Graphic recorder Zuhura Plummer gives a summary of the discussions.

For more information or to sign up to a mailing list on Meaningful Measurement, please contact debra.westlake@phc.ox.ac.uk or contact the Storytelling team.

Acknowledgement

Thank you to the University of Oxford’s Knowledge Exchange Seed Fund for funding this project.