Stakeholder Analysis — The RAVES Grid
Part of Decision Making Skills · GCSE GCSE Geography revision
This deep dive covers Stakeholder Analysis — The RAVES Grid within Decision Making Skills for GCSE Geography. Revise Decision Making Skills in Decision Making & Issue Evaluation for GCSE Geography with 15 exam-style questions and 20 flashcards. This is a high-frequency topic, so it is worth revising until the explanation feels precise and repeatable. It is section 4 of 15 in this topic. Use this deep dive to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
Topic position
Section 4 of 15
Practice
15 questions
Recall
20 flashcards
👥 Stakeholder Analysis — The RAVES Grid
A stakeholder analysis is not simply a list of who is for or against a decision. That earns Level 1. A high-quality stakeholder analysis explores why each group holds its position, what evidence they use to support it, and how much power they have to influence the outcome. The RAVES grid provides a systematic way to do this for every stakeholder.
RAVES stands for:
Wind Farm Example: RAVES Analysis
| Stakeholder | Attitude | Values | Evidence They Use | Significance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Energy developer | Strongly for | Profit, contract fulfilment, regulatory compliance | Wind speed data (>8 m/s); planning policy supporting renewables; projected 45 MW output | High — has legal right to apply; owns the capital |
| Local farming family | For (with conditions) | Income supplementation, farm survival, heritage | Land lease rates (£30,000/turbine/yr); declining agricultural subsidies since Brexit | Medium — land ownership gives legal standing; community sympathy |
| Tourism board | Strongly against | Visitor numbers, local economy, landscape aesthetics | AONB landscape sensitivity survey; visitor surveys showing landscape as top attraction; projected £2.1m annual revenue loss | Medium — significant economic leverage; may appeal decision |
| Local residents (split) | Mixed — 42% for, 58% against (survey) | Quality of life, property values, jobs, community identity | Noise impact study (47 dB at nearest homes); local unemployment rate 7.2%; property value modelling (−3% within 2 km) | High — democratic pressure; planning objections |
| Environmental NGO | For (with caveats on species) | Carbon reduction, climate targets, biodiversity | Life-cycle carbon analysis (turbines carbon-neutral after 6 months); Wales 2035 net-zero legal target | Medium — public credibility; legal challenges possible if ecological survey ignored |
| Planning committee | Formally neutral | Balanced development, legal compliance, democratic accountability | All of the above, plus national planning policy, precedent decisions | Very high — has legal decision-making authority |
A RAVES grid structures your thinking. In the exam, you do not need to write it as a table — but you should cover all five RAVES dimensions in your answer.
A Common Mistake: Strawmanning Opposing Stakeholders
Many students write the tourism board as simply "greedy" or "selfish" for opposing clean energy. This is not geographical analysis — it is dismissal. The tourism board has a legitimate, evidence-based concern: if 40,000 visitors per year come primarily for the landscape, and a landscape sensitivity survey classifies this site as highly sensitive, then the projected revenue loss is a real economic impact. A strong decision-making answer acknowledges this concern and explains why another factor outweighs it — it does not pretend the concern is invalid.