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“Absolutely mind bogglingly brilliant!” 

The first evaluation summary report for Curiosity Carnival is now available and shares the key findings with regard to Public Engagement including the numbers and demographics of those that engaged and the outcomes and impacts on the public that attended. View the report here… (behind SSO)

And while there will not be another Curiosity Carnival this year, the Oxfordshire Science Festival will be changing into a new 'science and ideas' festival 'IF' that is taking place in Oxford on 11-22 October 2018, which the University will be supporting. The call for participation is now open www.if-oxford.com.

Key Evaluation Findings

  • 42,496 people engaged with the live activities of Curiosity Carnival either as visitors to the events or remotely via online means.
  • Curiosity Carnival successfully increased participation rates of the two most disadvantaged socio-economic groups of residents in Oxfordshire (‘Financially Stretched’ and ‘Urban Adversity’) from the baseline levels seen at Oxford University Museums, to levels in line with the population.
  • 280,175 online/ digital active engagements took place during: the 6-month digital and engagement campaign; the main event and post-event activity via social media (such as Twitter posts; retweeting; Facebook posts etc) and other online engagements (such as views of the Oxford Sparks animation). 1 For example: Evaluation summary report re: Researchers’ Experiences, Outcomes and Impacts; Evaluation of Activities.
  • Curiosity Carnival was successful in delivering an inspiring, high-quality event. Almost all of the feedback on the content and presentation of the activities was positive, and in most cases, very positive; 9 in 10 of the visitors surveyed (89%) reported they had an excellent to good overall experience at Curiosity Carnival; 95% found the event and the activities interesting and 91% that the activities were fun.
  • Although in the minority, there were some issues expressed in relation to the lack of an overall programme and the logistics on the day.
  • Curiosity Carnival was successful in generating demonstrable outcomes and impact on the visitors including: enjoyment and inspiration; increased understanding of research and/or changes in perceptions and opinions; 83% of visitors surveyed strongly agreed or agreed with the statement “I learnt about research”.
  • The results of the assessment activities described in this report have demonstrated that Curiosity Carnival achieved each one of the objectives and goals that were set re: Public Engagement.