Drop-in Session Log Sheet
Summary
The Drop-In Session Log Sheet is a structured debriefing tool for program staff and/or volunteers to record attendance and key events during a drop-in program session. If used on a regular basis, the tool could enable staff and/or volunteers to monitor change within a group of participants and to highlight specific areas requiring action. The tool is particularly suited to drop-in programs where members of the participant group and staff/volunteers present may change frequently.
Further Details
The Drop-In Session Log Sheet includes the following areas:
Session details
Date, session e.g. day of week, name of session, location of session, staff and volunteers present
New Visitors
Details of new visitors: name, gender, age, employment status, ethnicity, accommodation status, referral source, comments on interaction
Repeat Visitors
Details of repeat visitors: name, age, gender
Evaluation
The major components of the Evaluation framework for peer-based youth programs are monitored:
- Environment
- Program factors
- Peer group factors
- Short term impacts
- Impacts on others
- Longer term outcomes
Positive or negative examples of behaviour are recorded for each component. Please refer to the Evaluation framework for peer-based youth programs for detailed descriptions of each component.
Reflection
What went well in the session, what would you do differently?
The Drop-In Session Log Sheet is completed by one or more staff and/or volunteers. The tool is used to conduct a structured debrief of the program session for all staff and/or volunteers who participated. Program staffing teams can use the tool to record the details of a session more completely i.e. not just looking at program effects but also looking at the way in which the program was implemented. By focusing on the same aspects of each session in a systematic way, trends over time can be identified.
Suggested Uses
The Drop-In Session Log Sheet is designed to be completed by the program facilitator in conjunction with any other staff members or volunteers who attended a drop-in session.
The tool may be used to give a sense of the types of changes occurring in the whole group and to collect evidence of intended program effects, what went well in the session and why, and what could have been done better. The tool may also be used to record unintended or unexpected effects and any resulting actions associated with these.
The tool is also useful as a record of events when there are staff absences or changes. It also helps to facilitate a smooth transition when there are staffing changes and new volunteers.