Our research impact is the demonstrable contribution that our work makes to society – to individuals, communities, organisations, nations and the economy.
Engaging with research users and identifying potential impacts from the outset will help you to plan processes by which your research may directly or indirectly catalyse change. Planning includes considering the kinds of impact you are hoping to achieve; that is, what might change, for whom, to what extent, and when.
The NIHR have produced a comprehensive toolkit which can help you to plan for impact at the start of a research project – which will help you to outline how you will engage with research users to deliver impact from your research.
This toolkit is designed to help you to learn the main stages of a standard IR process, which will lead to results that are comparable across regions and countries.
Developing a monitoring and evaluation framework helps clarify which pieces of information to collect to evidence your story of change.
It is good practice to include people who will be collecting the data when you develop your framework. You could also involve beneficiaries, volunteers, trustees, partner organisations or funders.
Ideally, write your framework before your project starts so you can make sure you are collecting appropriate data from the beginning.