Self-Assessment

• Local Youth Service engages in the Quality Standards Framework
• Briefing sessions are held
• Service users are invited to participate in self-assessment.
• Local Youth Service completes the Self-Assessment Process

The first step in the assessment process involves the local youth service completing the Self-Assessment Workbook. It is crucial that this be done as a whole organisation. This will ensure all stakeholders are involved from the beginning and will result in a greater level of ownership of the project across the organisation. The initial self-assessment will identify where the organisation stands in relation to each individual standard and will provide an action plan for the organisation to work on as they move towards the peer assessment stage.

The role of the Quality Standards Officer at this stage of the process is to support the organisation to complete the self-assessment workbook, and to address any gaps that emerge.

Peer Assessment

• Peer Assessment team visits local youth service
• Information is Gathered and determination is made
• Feedback is given and Quality Improvement Plan agreed

Peer assessment is an important task that is crucial to the whole QSF process and fundamental to the ethos of the framework. The peer assessment phase of the process involves a group of senior youth workers, administrators, managers, and volunteers drawn from the Peer assessor Panel, and acting on behalf of the Board of Youth Work Ireland, verifying the existence of evidence to support the case made in the self-assessment workbook.

Typically, a team of peer assessors, under the leadership of a peer assessment co-ordinator, will spend a number of days in the youth service examining documentary evidence; conducting focus groups and informal interviews; and, observing practice. All of this evidence will be brought together into a formal Assessment Report which will carry a rcommendation to award or not (See ‘Awards’ above).

The assessment Report will carry a series of actions and recommendations which will form a Quality Improvement Plan that will guide the youth service in addressing any gaps that have been identified through the assessment process.

Quality Award is made

Implementation of Quality Plan

Six Monthly Review