1. APPLYING A SOCIAL RETURN ON INVESTMENT ANALYSIS TO
ADULT LEARNING AND YOUTH WORK
MARIE DAILLY AND JIMMY DODDS
DUNDEE CITY COUNCIL

2. SOCIAL RETURN ON INVESTMENT
This presentation will cover how we applied SROI to Adult Learning and Youth Work in Dundee. It is based on an Evaluative report
Developed from social accounting and cost benefit analysis model
Based on set of seven principles :Involving stakeholders; being transparent, not overclaiming,verifying the result
Uses a combination of narrative; qualitative and financial measures. Show examples of reports that have brought along
SROI reports are quality assured by SROI Network
Impact measurement tool and provides a financial proxy value of the impact made.

3. WHY UNDERTAKE AN SROI Current Climate Council restructuring
Increased competition for resources
Demonstrating value for money in an economic measure
Understand what the investment is delivering
Communicating benefits of outcomes – more than case studies
To evidence the prevention agenda
Current Climate

4. FIRST STEP :ESTABLISHING THE SCOPE
Were clear about our audience Councillors; Chief Executive; Dundee Partnership;
Too big to analyse all the activities of CLD
Decided to focus in on Adult Learning and Youth Work
Needed to have clear boundaries about what our SROI Analysis would cover

5. ADULT LEARNING Guidance Community Based Adult Learning Translation And
Interpretation
College
Partnership
Courses
English for
Speakers
of Other
Languages
ADULT LEARNING
looked at all aspects of adult learning and narrowed it down to look at the Social Return of Literacies mainly due to the fact that the Literacies Strategy was up for review; timing was good, access to data and learners .
The principle can be applied to any aspect of Adult Learning or CLD.
Literacies

6. Xplore 1:1 Support MCMC Accreditation Groupwork Peer Mentor
(Volunteering)
1:1 Support
MCMC
Xplore
Accreditation
Groupwork

7. IDENTIFYING OUR STAKEHOLDERS
Adult Learning
Who do we have an effect on, who has an effect on us Undertook an impact map identified key stakeholders as
Learners
Family Members
Other agencies – employers
City Council
Which Stakeholders are experiencing significant change.

8. WHAT DO YOU THINK WOULD CHANGE
Learners Changes: Positive impact
on people’s personal, family,
community life, working life,
basic skills improve
Council Changes meet Single
Outcome Agreement targets
Employers Changes – people
retained in employment – more
able to do job.
Identified what would change for people in Literacies and Xplore

9. LOOKED AT WHAT THE STAKEHOLDERS INVESTED
Learners
Time
Commitment
Enthusiasm
Council: Tutors
Training - £350,000
Accommodation
Resources
Not able to identify any
Investments from others.
Felt the Council were already
Covered by the learners outcomes
So did not follow these through in
Order to avoid duplication.
No evidence of what employers invested as people came of their own back would be a different story if doing an sroi on work based learning

10. OUTPUTS – ADULT LEARNING
Improved wellbeing
Feeling better about myself
Increased Confidence
Moved into Employment
Got a Job – Kept my Job
Increase Literacy Skills
Involved in my Children’s Learning
Read Stories, Do Homework
Got a Qualification
Made New Friends
Joined New Group
ADULT LEARNING
Outputs
Easy to measure outputs. Already had information.
Numbers on MIS – database
Outcomes: Had good idea
From database, SOA reports,
Annual Reports, Case Studies –
But wanted to double check these were relevant
Undertook qualitative open interviews
With 20 learners - asking How would
you describe the change as a result of
Literacies Learning
Grouped them into outcomes above.
Asked the question How would you describe the change?

11. OUTPUTS – YOUTH WORK Areas of Impact Improved Wellbeing
Improved Health
Increased Accreditation/Attainment
Reduction in Anti-Social Behaviour
Improved Employability
Improved Behaviour
Areas of Impact

12. PUTTING A VALUE ON AN OUTCOME
Giving each outcome a financial value.
Monetisation – assigning a monetary value to things that do not have a price.
Approximations – proxies.

13. ARRIVING AT A SOCIAL VALUE
STAKEHOLDER
OUTCOME:
INDICATOR:
FINANCIAL PROXY
Learner
Increased Confidence
participant report on increase in confidence
Value of a confidence building course £529.00
Young Person Engagement Improved Lifetime Cost of NEET
in Learning attendance £56,301 (average public opportunity at School finance cost)
Some proxies are easier to arrive at from SROI proxy database other SROI reports on similar areas.
More than one proxy !!!!!

14. DEVELOPING YOUR OWN PROXIES
Extensive research.
Find sources of evidence to substantiate your choice.
Be able to provide detailed rationale for your choice.
ADULT LEARNING YOUTH WORK
Areas of Adult Learning didn’t
have financial proxy had to
develop these.
Costs of increased basic skills.
Cost of increased parental involvement
Extensive research
Validate the research
More than one source

15. MEASURING THE CHANGE Questionnaires undertaken with 80 learners.
Look at example of questionnaire – all done one:one interview due to literacy difficulties and length.
Question asked on each outcome.
Need to ensure don’t double count the outcomes – in the analysis.
Establishing how long – outcomes lost – we are only looking at our SROI over a year.

16. MEASURING THE CHANGE, XPLORE

17. DEADWEIGHT AND ATTRIBUTION
Would this change have happened anyway – without your intervention.
Who else helped make this change.
This is an estimate – can look at benchmarking against people with same issues who didn’t take part in your service.
Need to ask the question in your research

18. DID ANYONE ELSE HELP MAKE THIS CHANGE
AND BY HOW MUCH
Then calculated how much by.
These contributions taken off the fund analysis.

19. CALCULATING YOUR RETURN
68 =(amount of change) x £56,301 (financial proxy) x 0.86 (dead weight) x 0.60 (attribution) = £1,975,489.48
Investment of £716,929
SROI return based on research, £1,975, / £716,929 = £2.75
Total worked with 562/80=7.025
SROI £2.75x7.025=£19.31
£19.31 : £1 (saving to public finance)

20. Sensitivity