Quality Principles Phase 3 pilots

Emerging themes from Phases 1 & 2

The seven Quality PrinciplesPrinciple Linked question

1. Striving for excellence and innovation

Is there a real commitment to achieving excellence by, with and for children and young people?

2. Being authentic Is it authentic; is it the real thing?

3. Being exciting, inspiring and engaging

Are children and young people excited, engaged and inspired?

4. Ensuring a positive and inclusive experience

Does it ensure a positive and inclusive experience?

5. Actively involving children and young people

Are children and young people actively involved?

6. Enabling personal progression Do children and young people progress and know where to go next?

7. Developing belonging and ownership

Do children and young people feel they belong and it belongs to them?

Aims of the project

1. Do the quality principles benefit arts and cultural organisations/practitioners and if so how?

2. Do they change organisational/practitioner culture and practice?

3. Do they impact the quality of arts and cultural experiences?

4. Do they relate to the “Manchester Metrics” pilot?

5. To generate learning to inform approaches to understand and measure quality in arts and culture more widely

Timescale of the pilot stage

Stage 1 – Dec 2013>>• 5 organisations• Reaching 655

organisations and 45,042 children and young people

• ToC and workshop• Bi-monthly reporting

Stage 2 – March 2014>>• 9 organisations• Reaching a further 70

organisations and 2,554 children and young people

• ToC and workshop• Bi-monthly reporting

Stage 3 – NOW>>• 35 organisations apply• Seminar and VRE

Each pilot has begun with a theory of change (or ‘predictive hypothesis’)

How exactly did the phase 1 and 2 organisations test the quality principles?

Reviewing existing practice and evaluation findings in relation to QPs

Using QPs in their evaluation methods and frameworks

As focus for peer reflection and learning

Planning new work including their commissioning offers

Exploring relationship with other frameworks

Exploring new ways to demonstrate impact

Anticipated benefits – some of which we have begun to see

Increasing rigor of reflection, and clarity of pre-stated ambitions

Helps practitioners adopt/focus on the perspective of CYP

Consistent way of approaching planning stage, delivery, then outcomes

Common language for discussing work for, by and with CYP

Opportunity for advocacy

Continue developing shared language of quality between organisations

Begin to understand which (if any) of these pilots work in raising quality!

Organisation-level change we have begun to see… but ACE also want to know how/why?

Reinforced a culture of seeking the extra ‘one per cent improvement’

Sharper evaluation processes and instruments

Promoted learning within and between organisations

In some cases, shifted focus from teachers to pupils / from adults to CYP – in some orgs it is CYP using the principles

Moved up a ‘rung’ on the ladder of participation

Impact on quality as experienced by children and young peopleIt will take time to understand this, but there are some early clues about whether this makes a difference for CYP

Creating new opportunities for CYP involvement and leadership in a range of arts and cultural roles

More opportunities for progression

Encouraging more / different people to participate

New skills for young arts leaders

Relationship to “Manchester metrics”About capturing views of audiences, arts orgs and peers – on a simple scale e.g. “this was a thought provoking experience” Agree / Neutral / Disagree

Different purposes but complementary constructs

Metrics focus on artistic/cultural products with large audiences; quality principles can be applied more broadly, but need evaluation evidence

Both focus on evidence of participants’ experiences as an important route to excellence

Greatest opportunity for synergy is to apply metrics to a participatory experience for CYP

Learning

Some QPs more difficult to evidence (especially personal progression)

The QPs are inter-related (e.g. QP 1 “excellence” underpins all others)

Particular challenges for: virtual learning, small organisations, brief exposure

Need to be ambitious but realistic (resources/timescale)

Devil is in the detail and depth of investigation

The acid test

Sounds good so far - but does it make a positive difference for CYP?

What works, why, how can it be rolled out?

Testing the Quality Principles – next steps

TODAY: sector seminar and launch of VRE

Aug to Nov: phase 3 pilots complete their ToCs and pilot the QPs

Early December: progress updates and analysis

Dec to Feb 2015: analysis and reporting