Methods

Our international participant Outcomes surveys were designed by the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award Foundation in collaboration with the University College of London and are based on scientifically validated scales.

Nationally, our Chair of the Board is certified as an Impact Manager by Phineo gAG.

 

What data do we collect in Germany?

We measure our input through the Online Record Book. We collect data for this:

  • Number of participating organisations and proportion of educational institutions in challenging situations
  • Number of volunteer award leaders and new training programmes
  • Number and demographics of active and new participants, as well as awards achieved (e.g. by age, gender, federal state, type of school)
  • Ratio of educational institutions and their participants (public vs. private)
  • Number of hours worked in the areas of commitment, fitness and talent, as well as the specific areas
  • Number of days on expedition, depending on level

We measure our outcomes. Our data is collected using LamaPoll to ensure data compliance. It includes general questions on satisfaction with the programme, questions regarding participants backgrounds and focuses on socio-emotional competencies.

In Berlin, we are leading a controlled field study from 2025-2028 which encompasses all participants attending public schools. This study is done in collaboration with Berlin Education Ministry and is embedded into a doctoral programme at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München.

How is data collected internationally?

Surveys with Award participants, adults who support the Award and Award Alumni.

Monitoring of Award Centres: Annual statistics (e.g. Awards achieved), number of adults trained as Award Leaders and ORB data (see above).

Utilisation of secondary sources: WorldBank (e.g. GDP, life expectancy) and government reports.

How was our logical model developed?

Together with PwC, we have developed a logical model to determine and evaluate the impact of the award programme.

The resulting impact chains are based on the Phineo impact staircase (Phineo 2021).

Impact chains represent the relationship between:

  • Input: What was invested to implement and execute the programme?
  • Output: Activities carried out as a result of the investment
  • Outcome: What has changed as a result of the programme in terms of perceptions, attitudes and skills, new ways of acting and the living conditions of the target groups?
  • Impact: What effects of the programme benefit society in the long term?

You will find our resulting impact logic under the Theory of Change & Impact Logic.

How do we measure social impact?

With the help of PwC and its Total Impact Measurement and Management ( TIMM ) framework, the social value of the award was measured worldwide.

The TIMM framework uses robust methods to quantify and monetise the economic, social, environmental and fiscal impact of activities. This framework can be applied at the level of a product, a project, a site or even an entire organisation. The methods are based on widely recognised approaches such as the UK Government’s Green Book on Policy Appraisal and Evaluation, the Social Return on Investment (SROI) principles and the WBCSD’s Social & Human Capital Protocol.

There are different definitions of social impact, but in general it refers to the positive and negative impact and dependency of an activity on people and society (WBSCD, 2015). Social value in the context of the programme refers to the value, in monetary terms, of the changes the programme has created for and through its stakeholders (e.g. the young people participating in the programme, the adults involved in delivering the programme and other members of society such as businesses and governments).