Experiential Learning from Rapid Evaluation in Health and Care

There is a growing recourse to rapid evaluation in health and care to inform time-sensitive decisions in policy and practice. Ellins, Daniel and Sidhu (2025) discuss the use of rapid evaluation, and the challenges and limitations involved, from a methodological and operational perspective. They offer valuable insights into rapid evaluation practice and the trade-offs involved in the simultaneous pursuit of rigour, rapidity and relevance. In this editorial, we reflect on the insights they share and add to these, drawing on our own experiences of evaluation. We argue that rapid evaluation provides essential evidence into time-sensitive decision-making by planners and policymakers, while requiring an approach that can help balance the inherent trade-off between rapidity and rigour. In so doing, we discuss: (i) the ways in which rapid evaluation approaches can support what Ellins et al. refer to as ‘high stakes’ decisions; (ii) the potential for more in-depth dialogue between evaluators and ‘policy customers’ and commissioners of evaluations to inform specifications for rapid evaluation; (iii) the value of evaluation teams that blend diverse evaluation and research cultures (e.g. academic and policy research institute cultures) to bring complementary research lenses and operational approaches to collaborative working; (iv) the need to navigate challenges in the wider research infrastructure; and (v) the importance of connected communities of practice.