Review of the Climate Challenge Fund - Appendix A: Sampling Methodology and Appendix B: Topic Guides

Appendix B: Topic Guides

Case Study Interviews: Community Group Representatives

Introduction

Introduction to project: Changeworks has been commissioned by The Scottish Government to undertake a review of the Climate Challenge Fund 3 (CCF3). The review will inform how the CCF or any successor scheme can best enable communities to contribute to the Scottish Government's climate change objectives.

Purpose of interview: The review is being undertaken through a number of methods. As already highlighted, we are speaking to you as part of case study research with your community group. The purpose of this is to understand what went well and what didn't go well within your CCF3 project, including challenges you have faced, your perspectives on CCF3 and thoughts on the future scheme. We also have some specific questions.

[if in depth] We will also want to speak to other people involved in the project, and potentially visit you for further discussions. You may want to think about who is best placed to do this after the discussion and we will check again at the end.

We anticipate that the interview will last approximately one hour (N. B. This may very between light touch and depth interviews and based on who is being interviewed)

Case Study Interviews: Community Group Representatives

Data protection / confidentiality:

[if LIGHT touch case study] This interview will be treated in confidence and all findings will be reported anonymously.

[If DEPTH case study] This interview will be treated in confidence and all findings will be reported anonymously. However the findings from some groups will be written up as case studies and featured in the appendix of the report; this will focus on the activity, successes and challenges of your project but not your opinions of the CCF programme. If we would like to feature you as a case study, we will contact you and agree the content with you. Are you ok with this?

Are you happy for me to record the interview today? The recording will not be passed onto anyone outside the research team and the recording and any transcripts will be destroyed after one year.

Background to group

The first set of questions is in relation to your community group and CCF project funded through CCF3 (since 2012). Please answer questions in relation to this CCF project only and not projects funded through previous CCF rounds.

• Can you tell us about your community group?
• How many active members do you have?
• When was it set up?
• What is the purpose of the group?
• What are your main activities?
• How many members or active community members do you have (roughly)?
• What is your role within the CCF project?
• What does this entail?
• How long have you been in this role?
• How long have you been involved in the community group?

Background to project

• Thinking about your CCF3 project, what was its main aim?
• What did you plan to do to meet those aims?
• To what extent do you feel the aims of your project were met? Why do you say that?
• Where did the idea for the project come from?
• Does it link to previous projects / activity?
• Did you have previous experience of climate change / community projects?
• Have you had any other previous funding from CCF?
  • IF YES, what was the project? How successful was this project?
• Why did you decide to apply to CCF3 for your current/most recent project?
• How did you hear about the CCF programme?
• How did your idea progress from the initial idea to the CCF application?

CCF applications must meet the following three criteria: Projects must be community led; Projects must lead to a measurable reduction in carbon dioxide equivalents or improve carbon literacy and/or carry out adaptation, and; Projects are expected to demonstrate a sustainable legacy in the community

• How did you interpret these criteria? Were any confusing / difficult to understand?
• What did you understand by 'community' in this context?
• How easy did you find it to meet these criteria?

CCF3 contained an emphasis on engaging different types of groups and group activity. These were known as the 'refresh objectives'.

• Were you aware of these? [if not aware prompt via themes]
• Did you consider any of the following refresh themes when you applied for CCF3?
  • Engaging with the most disadvantaged or 'hard to reach' communities including those in low income areas or minority ethnic communities.
  • Making CCF accessible to communities not previously engaged in climate change whose locus of activity is in other areas e.g. sport
  • Targeting the engagement of young people in climate change action
  • Supporting projects to make more profound changes and embed these using mature CCF groups to enrich and add value to CCF and support newer smaller groups
  • Testing new areas of CCF activity including piloting adaptation projects or innovative carbon reducing ideas
  • Supporting projects to raise revenue from their activity to reinvest in the project
• How did you interpret 'innovation' in terms of your CCF project - is it relevant to your project? What would an innovative CCF project look like to you?
• Did you receive a development grant?
  • [IF YES] how did this help you progress?
• Did you apply for CCF funding for this project? Was this successful?
• Would you have been able to apply for CCF without having received the development grant?
• Were you aware of the CCF Ideas Bank?
  • [IF YES] How useful do you think it is; was it helpful?
• How important was the Ideas Bank in your group submitting an application? [Ideas Bank projects only]

Behaviour change

• Could you please describe the extent to which your project sought to raise awareness of climate change and related issues?
• What activities did you undertake to raise awareness?
• How did you relate this to actually changing people's behaviour?
• Was this complemented by other activities by your group; other agencies?
• How did you think awareness-raising would impact on people?
• Thinking about your CCF3 project, which behaviours did you plan to change amongst your community?
• What/ who was your target audience?
• How did you identify them?
• How did you assess their needs / the interventions required?
• Which specific behaviours did you want to change?
• How / why did you choose them?

PROBE on specific actions, rather than general aims (e.g. increase in cycling to local school by pupils, vs. reducing carbon arising from travel)

• Did you set any targets in relation to behaviour change activity? E.g. number of engagements; instances of behaviour changes, CO2, savings
• What stages/ actions did you undertake to deliver behaviour change?
  • For each action/stage, probe in detail to explore activities

Use ISM factors to identify which factors were being targeted, and using which methods, whether single or multiple levers / approaches [use as probes to explore I, S, and M contexts, but do not use exhaustively]

• Individual:
  • Values Beliefs Attitudes, Costs & Benefits; Emotions; Agency; Skills & Knowledge; Habits
• Social:
  • Opinion Leaders: Institutions; Norms; Roles; Tastes; Meanings; Networks
• Material:
  • Rules & Regs; Technology; Infrastructure; Objects; Time/Schedules
• How did you measure the success of your interventions?
• Did you set targets at the project outset?
  • How did you set these?
• Were they outputs or outcomes?
  • Did any of these change throughout the course of the project?
  • How?; why?
• How did these match with your initial application?
• Where did you have limited success?
• What would you have liked to have done to influence behaviour change that you could not?
  • Relate to ISM factors

Successes and barriers/challenges

• Thinking about other aspects of your project, what worked well?
• Why did it work well?
• What challenges or barriers did you face in your project?
• How far were you able to overcome them?
• Did you receive co-funding as part of your CCF project?

[By co-funding I mean additional funding to carry out the activities that were part of your CCF application, NOT funding that supports other activities undertaken by your group]

• If NO, did you look for other sources?
  • Where? How?
• If YES,
  • Where did you get funding from?
  • How much?
  • How critical was this to your project proceeding?
  • Was this additional funding fulfilling a different need / meeting different outcomes?
• What role did the CCF have - was it a catalyst for the project or just additional funding to carry on with a project?
• Were you able to raise any revenue as part of your CCF project?

[By raising revenue I mean raising money from project activities or outputs - e.g. selling produce or services]

• IF NO, Is this something you considered doing?
• IF YES,
• How successful was this?
• What were the challenges you faced?
• Did you work in partnership with other organisations or initiatives as part of your project?
  • If NO, why not? Did you try to do this?
  • If YES, Who did you work with?
  • How did this partnership contribute to your project?
• In terms of engaging the community, what successes and barriers did you face?
  • Probe on hard to reach / target groups
• Overall, if you were to do your project again, what would you do differently?
  • Why?
• Would you apply to the CCF again for funding?

Project achievements and legacy

• What do you think your project's greatest achievements were?
• How easy did you find calculating the carbon emissions saved from the project?
  • Why / why not?
  • What information or support did you get?
  • Would other information or support have been useful?
  • How easy was it to collect and access data?
• What other impacts or benefits do you think the project had on your community?
  • Probe on:
  • Community cohesion
  • Training, upskilling, employability
  • Wider project applications
  • New groups / activities
  • Increased knowledge of community need etc.?
• What evidence do you have of these?
• Do you think the changes delivered by your CCF project are lasting changes?
  • Why/why not?
• How did you plan to ensure that changes made would be lasting?
• In terms of creating a lasting change, what opportunities did you face?
• Barriers and challenges

Perceptions of CCF

The remaining questions relate to the CCF programme overall and specifically CCF3.

• What do you think the strengths and weaknesses of the CCF3 programme are?
• Why? What could be done better?
• What support did you receive from CASP? What other support did you receive?
  • What did you think of this support?
  • Was it useful?
• Could it have been better?
• Do you think other/further support would have been helpful?
  • If YES - what type of support?

Future of CCF

• In thinking about a future CCF programme or successor, what would you keep about the programme?
  • Why?
• What would you change about it?
  • Why?

There are a number of options for a future CCF which we'd like to explore. Can you tell us your opinion of the following options: [Probe on pros and cons for each one]

• A more focused CCF in terms of the range of projects funded. e.g.
  • Do you think the CCF should continue, or increase, a focus on encouraging groups to innovate?
  • Do you think that community groups should (only) receive new funding for doing the same work with a different community, or different work with the same community?
• A stronger focus on funding groups from disadvantaged areas (in line with the Programme for Government) and/or other disadvantaged or equalities groups (e.g. young people and JCCF, minority ethnic groups).
• A greater emphasis on co-funding of projects, except those initial projects coming forward from disadvantaged areas and other disadvantaged or equalities groups.
• Inclusion of an element of loan funding for CCF (for example along the lines of the CARES model) - in order to enable funds to go further.
• Two tier applications (e.g. fast-track applications and in-depth applications that require more reporting, recording etc. for larger projects)

Longer term funding options

• How do you think development grants should be changed or improved going forward?
  • Probe on:
  • Larger funding available
  • Change in use / purpose?
• How could links be improved between the CCF or CCF groups and other organisations or initiatives at a local or national level?
• What links would your group like to improve?
  • In what ways could this happen?
• What support would be needed for groups?
  • Who should lead on this?
• Should CCF place a greater emphasis on encouraging projects to raise revenue through their projects?
• Lastly, do you have any other comments about anything we've discussed?
• [In depth only]: confirm who would be best placed to add further insight into the above discussion: e.g. volunteers, projects workers; recipients.
• Explore possible meet up times / dates or arrange to follow up.
• Thank you very much for your time. Describe next steps in research

Stakeholder Interviews

Introduction

Introduction to project: Changeworks has been commissioned by The Scottish Government to undertake a review of the Climate Challenge Fund 3 (CCF3). The review will inform how the CCF or any successor scheme can best enable communities to contribute to the Scottish Government's climate change objectives.

Purpose of interview: The review is being undertaken through a number of methods. As already highlighted, we are speaking to a number of stakeholders to explore their perspectives of what has worked well within CCF3 and what a future CCF might look like. We appreciate that the stakeholders we are interviewing have different levels of experience and knowledge of CCF so please let us know if you are unable to answer any of the questions.

For those unclear on CCF:

The CCF has run since 2008 and funding is currently committed until March 2016. The Fund offers awards of up to £150,000 per annum per project. All applications are from community groups, and must be: Community-led; lead to carbon reductions, and; have a sustainable legacy. This overarching purpose will remain the same in any continuation.

We anticipate that the interview will last approximately one hour.

Data protection / confidentiality: This interview will be treated in confidence and all findings will be reported anonymously. If there are any findings we would like to report which may compromise this anonymity we will discuss this with you when writing the report and only include with your approval.

Are you happy for me to record the interview today? The recording will not be passed onto anyone outside the research team and the recording and any transcripts will be destroyed after one year.

Background

• What is your role?
• What does this involve?
• What interaction / experience / knowledge do you have with CCF and in particular CCF3 (i.e. the funding since 2012)?

Opinions on current CCF

[Note: the extent to which respondents can answer these questions will vary based on their experience of CCF and their roles. Interviewer will be flexible with these questions]

• How has CCF3 supported your work / policy area/ targets/ the community sector?
• Overall what do you think has gone well with CCF and CCF3 in particular?
• What do you think it has achieved?
• What has not gone well with CCF3 and why?
• What other lessons have emerged from CCF3?

Following a previous review of CCF, CCF3 has focused on 'refresh themes' as follows.

• Were you aware of these? How successful do you think each of these has been?
• Broaden: Engaging with the most disadvantaged or 'hard to reach' communities including those in low income areas or minority ethnic communities.
• Making CCF accessible to communities not previously engaged in climate change whose locus of activity is in other areas e.g. sport
• Targeting the engagement of young people in climate change action
• Deepen: Supporting projects to make more profound changes and embed these using mature CCF groups to enrich and add value to CCF and support newer smaller groups
• Explore: Testing new areas of CCF activity including piloting adaptation projects or innovative carbon reducing ideas
• Supporting projects to raise revenue from their activity to reinvest in the project
• Do you have any opinions on the success or otherwise of the following?
  • Introduction of development grants to help assist new groups from disadvantaged or hard to reach communities apply to CCF
  • Introduction of the Ideas Bank

CCF also tries to ensure that CCF groups have a legacy within their communities.

• How well do you think CCF has achieved this?
• How could the potential for longer-term legacy be strengthened going forward?

The programme encourages CCF projects to work in partnership with other organisations or national/local initiatives. What experience do you have of this?

• Could groups work more with local or national initiatives you are aware of?
• How could this collaborative work be started or developed?

CCF groups are encouraged to seek co-funding from other sources as well as CCF.

• How successful do you think this has been?
• What other opportunities exist?
• Does CCF fit or complement well with any schemes you run / are involved with?

Future CCF or successor scheme

The next questions are about your perspectives on how a future CCF or successor scheme would look.

• Overall, is there anything you would change about the CCF?
  • Why?
  • How could this be achieved?
• Is there anything in particular about CCF3 you think it is important to keep?

The next few questions will explore possible options for the future CCF or successor scheme.

• What would be the pros and cons of the CCF being more focused in terms of the range of projects funded i.e. Do you think the CCF should continue, or increase, a focus on encouraging groups to innovate?
  • What would innovation mean to you in terms of CCF group projects?
• Do you think that community groups should (only) receive new funding for doing the same work with a different community, or different work with the same community?
• Do you think the CCF should have a strong (or stronger) focus on funding groups from disadvantaged areas (in line with the Programme for Government) and/or other disadvantaged or equalities groups (e.g. young people and JCCF, minority ethnic groups)?
  • Are there any particular groups you think it should or should not focus on?
  • How would local projects with these groups help your national objectives (if applicable)?
• Do you think the CCF should have a greater emphasis on co-funding of projects?
  • How could this be achieved?
• Do you have any ideas about what sorts of co-funding could or should be encouraged?
  • Would you exclude this from some applicants, e.g. initial projects coming forward from disadvantaged areas and other disadvantaged or equalities groups?
• How do you think development grants should be changed or improved going forward? Probe on:
  • Larger funding available
  • Change in use / purpose?
• How do you think the CCF programme and projects should work with complementary national and/or local initiatives (e.g. national energy efficiency programmes) and wider partnerships/organisations at a local level?
• Which funding streams or policy activities are you involved in that touch on communities?
  • Do any of these (from central or local government) include funding for local infrastructure?
    • If Yes, could they benefit from community group support to help enable behaviour change and how could this be achieved?
• How can or should the CCF contribute towards national or local targets and policies relevant to you and your role?
• How do you see community groups supporting policy developments, including infrastructure changes, in your policy area to support behaviour change?
  • Is there a role for CCF / community groups in tackling the Social and Individual contexts to foster behaviour change to complement these? [explore respondent feedback in terms of ISM]
• Do you have any example of where links with communities or with CCF projects are working well in your area?
  • What are the key successes and impacts?
  • How could this fit with any future option for co-funding?
• How else can CCF groups support local and/or national priorities?
• Do you think the CCF could and should include an element of loan funding (for example along the lines of the CARES model)?
• Should CCF place a greater emphasis on encouraging projects to raise revenue through their projects?
  • How could this be achieved?
  • What do you feel would be realistic for community groups, in terms of revenue raising?
• What support for CCF groups are you aware of?
  • How could this be improved [if known]? Why?
• What other support is out there and is used or could be used by CCF groups? Probe on:
  • Different stages: design / delivery / reporting
  • Who could provide support?
  • o How?
• Do you have any other comments about anything we've discussed?
• Thank you very much for your time. Describe next steps in research

CCF Panel Workshop Outline

Introduction

This document outlines the aim, agenda and workshop plan for the CCF panel workshop as part of the CCF3 Review.

Aim of the workshop

Findings from this workshop will feed into wider research to review the CCF3 to help inform its future development. Specifically the research aims are to address:

• How CCF3 has delivered on its 'refresh' objectives?
• How can the CCF, or any successor scheme, best enable communities to contribute to the Scottish Government's climate change objectives and targets?

The workshop aims to explore CCF panel members' perspectives on these two broad research questions, and the more detailed questions which are outlined in the Research Proposal. However a greater emphasis of the workshop will be on question two.

Since the panel's purpose is to review and assess CCF project applications, it is assumed that the panels' knowledge and experience of the application stage of CCF is extensive. Their knowledge on the delivery of projects is assumed to be less extensive, although will vary between different panel members.

Set up

Workshop facilitators will arrive at the venue early to set out the room in a way that encourages open discussion and allows for break out for group activity

Facilitators will have:

• A list of participants
• Recording device and spare batteries
• Notepad to record data
• Resources for the group discussion e.g. post-it notes, flip charts, pens

Workshop plan

INTRODUCTION (15 mins)

• Introduction to the workshop (Changeworks to present)
• Facilitators introduce themselves
• Aim of the workshop (as above)
• Agenda, timings and practicalities
• How the workshop will work i.e. opportunity to hear opinions from everyone, allow all participants to speak
• Confidentiality and data protection: findings will be presented anonymously

Check everyone ok for Changeworks to record the workshop (the recording will only be used to help write the report and then will be destroyed)

• Brief presentation about the research (Changeworks to present)
  • Research aims
  • Reminder of CCF3 refresh themes
  • Research methodology and timeline
  • Questions from panel members

WORKSHOP ONE: REVIEW OF CCF3 (1 hour)

Activity and discussion

This session aims to explore and review lessons from CCF3. It will start with a general group discussion with one facilitator leading and the other recording notes on a flip chart. Notes will be recorded as per the refresh themes and will include an 'other category'. These categories will not lead the discussion.

First stage of the conversation to focus on positives/ successes:

What has gone well with CCF3 and why?

PROBE ON (if required):

• Explore
  • Income generation
  • Adaptation / innovative carbon reducing ideas
• Broaden
  • New groups (those not previously working in climate change or ethnic minorities)
  • Targeting disadvantaged or hard to reach groups (e.g. older people, people with disabilities, low income areas)
  • Development grants
  • Junior CCF
• Deepen
  • CASP support
  • Ideas Bank
  • Legacy
  • Funding and partnerships
  • Incl. other income streams
  • Local / national agencies
  • Repeat CCF funding and eligibility
  • Role of CCF and other groups in sustaining groups

Facilitator to bring discussion together and move on to reflect on development / improvements or what didn't work so well with CCF3:

• What should be built upon or developed?
• What has not gone well with CCF3 and why?
• What other lessons have emerged from CCF3?

Summary

Participants are asked to write their ideas (up to three for each question) on post-it notes and put onto relevant boards to answer:

• What would you keep about the CCF?
• What would you change about the CCF?
• What would you add to the CCF?

Changeworks facilitates a summary to go over points raised on the three boards.

Any key ideas over how a future CCF or successor scheme may look (over and above those listed in below) will be taken forward to the second half of the session. Changeworks will review the ideas during the workshop break to identify any key themes.

THE FUTURE OF CCF OR A SUCCESSOR SCHEME (1 hour 15 min)

Activity

The group will be split into two groups of five people. One Changeworks facilitator will facilitate either group.

Changeworks will present four options for the future CCF scheme (as below) and each will be set out in brief on an A3 sheet and handed to the groups. It will be stressed that these options are not mutually exclusive.

Any major options / ideas that came out of the earlier workshop will also be included and participants will be asked for any further options (NB: the time to discuss each option would need to be reduced if further options are added).

Each group spends around 15 minutes discussing pros and cons of each option in terms of:

• Potential new community groups
• Existing community groups
• Scottish Government climate change targets
• Other Scottish Government policies, schemes and grant (prompt list provided)
• How the option could be achieved

Changeworks will facilitate a brief discussion with the whole group (10 people) to summarise key points. This will be carried out twice: firstly after options 1 and 2 have been discussed and secondly after options 3 and 4 have been discussed.

Four options for future CCF or successor scheme:

• A more focused CCF in terms of the range of projects funded, including:
• Keeping a focus on its explore focus
• Keeping the requirement that existing groups can (only) receive new funding for doing different work (including same work in different community)
• A stronger focus on funding groups from disadvantaged areas and/or other disadvantaged or equalities groups (e.g. young people and JCCF, minority ethnic groups)?

Funding options including:

• Greater emphasis on co-funding of projects (except those initial projects coming forward from disadvantaged areas and other disadvantaged or equalities groups)
• Inclusion of an element of loan funding
• Should and how could income generating potential be strengthened?

Partnerships and support including:

• How could development grants be strengthened going forwards?
• How could working with complementary national and/or local initiatives and wider partnerships/organisations at a local level fit with any future option for co-funding?
• How else can CCF groups support local and/or national priorities?
• How can projects be better supported through the design, delivery and reporting stage?

FINAL COMMENTS AND CLOSING REMARKS (15 min)

The two groups will come back together following the discussion of the four options.

Changeworks will ask participants for any other thoughts about CCF3 or its future; make closing remarks, thank participants.