A small practice with slow habits.
We listen first, write plainly, and show our working. Two practice areas, five-step engagements, four habits we never skip.
Applied research
Show what's working — and what isn't.
We design and run evaluations for organisations that need defensible answers. Our work is built for funders who actually read the methodology — and for implementing teams who need findings they can act on.
We're comfortable across quasi-experimental and experimental designs, mixed-methods studies, theory-of-change workshops, cost-effectiveness analysis, and rapid evidence reviews. We're not comfortable padding a report.
- Theory of change3–6 weeks · workshops + diagram + memo
- Impact evaluation6–18 months · design, instruments, analysis, report
- Cost-effectiveness analysis6–10 weeks · model + brief
- Literature & evidence reviews4–8 weeks · structured synthesis
- Monitoring & evaluation framework4–6 weeks · indicators + tools
- Policy analysis4–8 weeks · policy briefs & submissions
Communications
Translate evidence into something readers stay with.
Most impact reports aren't read past page three. We write the kind your trustees finish — and your funders forward. The same care a research piece deserves, applied to every word the public reads.
We work in impact reports, policy briefs, working papers, web copy, LinkedIn campaigns, newsletters, and SEO-aware long-form. Always British English, always sentence-case headings, never hype.
- Impact report8–14 weeks · essay-style, 12–24 pages
- Policy brief3–5 weeks · 4–8 pages
- Working paper8–16 weeks · long-form, citation-grade
- Web & landing copy3–6 weeks · IA + writing
- LinkedIn campaignQuarterly retainer
- Newsletter & SEOQuarterly retainer
Five steps. None of them skipped.
Every project — research or communications — moves through the same five movements. The middle three change shape; the first and last never do.
Listen
Half a day on a call, a half-day reading what you've already written. We listen for the question behind the question.
Scope
A short memo: the question we'll answer, the method we'll use, the budget, the timeline, and what we won't do. You sign or you don't.
Work
Fieldwork, analysis, drafting. Weekly notes — never a black box. We share early drafts knowing they're imperfect.
Sharpen
Two rounds of sharp editing. We cut anything we wouldn't read ourselves. The methodology stays — the padding goes.
Hand over
The deliverable, plus a one-page summary, plus a thirty-minute call with whoever will use it. We stay reachable for ninety days.
Four habits that shape every engagement.
Listen first.
Half a day of listening before the first diagram. Most evaluation failure is born in the first meeting — we slow that meeting down on purpose.
Show the working.
Methodology in the appendix, appendix in plain English, conclusions in the first paragraph. No black boxes. No proprietary frameworks.
Write to be read.
A 16-page essay your board finishes is more useful than a 60-page report nobody opens. We design for completion, not coverage.
Stay on your side.
If we're not the right fit, we'll say so — and point you to someone who is. Long-term trust beats single engagements every time.