Key points

•  Planning an evaluation involves identifying the evaluation audience and objectives, the appropriate evaluation type, the governance structure, the resources required and the timing. Developing an evaluation plan at an early stage will help to ensure that all the important steps have been considered.

•  Any evaluation can require a variety of resource types, depending on the evaluation, including funding, staff management, procurement expertise, and analytical staff input.

•  Evaluations need to be proportional to the risks, scale and profile of the policy, and this has implications for the type and level of resources required.