Celebrating 10 Years of The Agency.
Evaluation and events
#DecadeOfChange
About The Agency
The Agency is an award-winning creative entrepreneurship programme, that has been a driving force in nurturing creativity, social innovation, and community empowerment across the UK. The programme has also been instrumental in shaping the way arts companies do business, diversifying boards, programming, and staffing. Working with young people 15-25, they are seen as the solution, supported to have agency and recognise their power to make change within their lives, within their community, and in their cities.
Longitudinal Evaluation 2013- 2023
Independent report by: Dr Meg Peterson and Sara Rizzo
Co-researchers: Farhad Gohar, Dorcas Bassey, Leon Douglas, and Divine Obijiaku
This longitudinal study examines the impact of The Agency over the last ten years. The evaluation tested whether the short and long-term outcomes (or impacts) outlined in the rTheory of Change (ToC) hold true; whether the programme’s activities and ways of working are effective in achieving these outcomes; and what can be done to improve the programme and its methodology going forward.
The evaluation took a creative and participatory approach, using alternative methods to engage current and past Agents in data collection and analysis, with the aim of widening the depth and breadth of the evaluation to further guide the development of the programme.
Full Report
Summary Report
National Gathering 2023
This year, The Agency celebrated its 10th anniversary in the UK. As part of the programme, an annual gathering was held for Agents and partners from across the country to come together, share ideas and network.
At the gathering, we had the chance to hear life-affirming stories from change-makers from across the UK who are living in areas where people simply aren’t given enough opportunities. Through The Agency, they have developed the tools to create impactful social projects, based on their desire for change.
‘The Agency made me think creatively about my whole life. The process started with me and my desire and was shaped by what I wanted to do. This movement of changemakers has made me who I am today.’
Henrietta, Alumni Agent
Photos from the National Gathering
Images by OVO Gallery, Agency Alumni Olalekan Victor Oderinde
Thank you to our partners and funders: The National Community Lottery Fund, Kristian Gerhard Jebsen Foundation and Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation.