‘NEW’ Visits Approval System for all – EVOLVE

An insight into ELC’s ‘NEW’ Off-Site Visits Approval System – EVOLVE

There has been a growing realisation the ‘Educational Excursion Forms’ (EEF’s) and processing system we currently use to notify, share, authorise and report on all excursions within ELC is becoming increasingly ‘creaky’ and laborious especially in terms of data entry and authorisation by senior staff.

Research has been carried out into IT systems that automate this process; delivering efficiency benefits, improving accessibility of information, reporting and reducing paper…

The IT system chosen by ELC is EVOLVE (Educational Visits Online Virtual Environment) a fully managed online service specifically designed to enable the efficient planning, processing, monitoring and reporting of educational and off-site visits. The system is in use in more than 50 Local Authorities and is now widely regarded as the preferred choice.  Designed for use by Education, Children’s Services and Community Wellbeign departments.

Some of the benefits include:

· A robust notification and approval system adapted to suit specific Local Authority requirements
· A much quicker approval process
· Less paperwork and duplication
· 100% web-based and can therefore be accessed from any computer connected to the internet in any location
· Enables staff to upload pupil details from school information management systems (e.g. SIMS), track pupil visits attended, and download pupil reports
· Ability for LA to delegate responsibility to Visit Coordinators/Heads to approve certain types of excursion
· Staff upload and manage their own qualification/experience database which can be transferred to any LA operating the same system
· Powerful search and sort facilities to assist monitoring and reporting
· Clear audit trail
· Ability to provide parents/carers with access to specified visit information.
· Ability to upload attachments to visit information including consent forms, letters home, risk assessments etc.
· Comprehensive visit and provider evaluation tools
· Overall a one-stop shop for Visit planning, monitoring and evaluating

Where do we go from here?..

June 2011 – Continue building the system to suit ELC staffing structure and ELC Excursion & Outdoor Learning guidelines
June (onwards) 2011 – Raise awareness of the new system
Oct 2011 – Launch a pilot project with a small number of Education, Children’s Services & Community Wellbeing Establishments
Jan (start) 2011 – Start rolling out training/drop in sessions to all establishment Visit Coordinators
Jan (end) 2011 – Start rolling out training/drop in sessions to all establishment staff who will use the system
Aug 2012 – All Establishments transferred over to the EVOLVE system

Please do not hesitate to contact us to ask any questions you may have about the system, training courses can be found under ‘Staff Development’ ‘Managing Off-Site Visits’ on the Outdoor Learning website.

Liz Brookes (Outdoor Learning) lbrookes@eastlothian.gov.uk
or
Judith Wood (H&S) jwood@eastlothian.gov.uk