How do you write an evidence-based needs analysis?

Under “Relevance”, the evaluator checks whether the project is based on genuine, clearly defined needs and whether the objectives follow from them. General statements without evidence (“digital skills are very important today”) earn no points; concrete information about what happens in your organisation does.

Write each need in the order below. The worksheet further down turns this structure into a paragraph for you.

• Problem: one measurable sentence, such as “reading comprehension in year 7 is low”.
• Evidence: a figure and its source. Internal test results, attendance records, teacher or parent surveys, school counselling reports.
• Affected group: who, how many, what characterises them? Mention pupils with fewer opportunities if relevant.
• Root cause: the reason behind the problem. Teaching time, method, materials or teacher skills?
• What the project will change: which indicator do you expect to change, and in which direction, by the end of the project?

The strongest evidence is your own organisation's data. National or international reports (PISA or Eurostat figures, for example) provide context but are not enough on their own; make the link: “this national picture looks like this in our school”.

If you have no data, run a small survey or focus group before applying. Even a five-question teacher survey gives a concrete answer to “how did you identify the need?”.

In a partnership project, the need does not belong to the coordinator alone. Describe how your partner experiences the same problem or how its experience will contribute. Explaining why solving the problem together works better than in one country is also your answer to the question of European added value.

Weak: “Our pupils' digital skills are insufficient and will be developed through this project.”

Strong: “In the digital skills test given to year 6 in September, 62% of our pupils could not complete the file-editing and safe-search tasks. In a teacher survey, only 18% of teachers outside ICT use digital tools in lessons. Our partner school reports a similar picture but has experience with block-based coding. We aim to raise the success rate in the same test to 60% by the end of the project.”