An external evaluation can offer a thorough and independent evaluation of your project. This can be very useful to demonstrate your impact and has the following benefits:
- It is independent.
- It would be run by experts if you engage the right external evaluators.
- It allows you to focus on the delivery of your project.
The main drawback of this method is that it can cost more money than running your own evaluation. If you are planning an external evaluation then you should write this into your budget at the fundraising stage. Funders are often happy to see that you have considered this at an early stage as it means they will have the information they need to know if their funding has been impactful. Even if you have an external evaluator you will still need to agree your outcomes and outputs, how to measure them and regularly collect the data to evaluate. If you don’t it is like inviting a chef to help you make dinner but not providing any ingredients.