Invitation to Tender

Invitation to Tender Title of Project Date Evaluation of the Media Trust's Marketing and Communications National Support Service Programme August 201...
Author: Lilian Francis
5 downloads 0 Views 133KB Size
Invitation to Tender Title of Project Date

Evaluation of the Media Trust's Marketing and Communications National Support Service Programme August 2010

Summary Media Trust is the lead partner and accountable body for the National Support Service workstream on Marketing and Communications. This Capacitybuildersfunded programme aims to benefit support providers across the English voluntary sector in two ways: by building a solid marketing and communications infrastructure; and developing support providers' marketing and communications skills and capacity. The evaluation will involve: • an initial scoping meeting with Media Trust to plan the work; • writing, testing, running and analysing results from an online survey of up to 400 service users; • in-depth telephone interviews with 10-15 people who have used multiple services within the programme; and • a further meeting with Media Trust and Capacitybuilders to discuss findings. Three deliverables are expected: • a full report of findings together with recommendations for service improvements; • an executive summary of the report; and • updated contact information (if applicable) for survey and interview respondents Background to the Project Media Trust believes that everyone should have a voice and the opportunity to be heard. Media Trust is the UK's leading communications charity. It works with media organisations and charities to enhance their communications and enable communities to find their voice and make it heard. Since April 2008 Media Trust has been leading the National Support Service on Marketing and Communications. Working in partnership with the National Council

for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO), BPRI, Marcom, and the National Association for Voluntary and Community Action (NAVCA), the programme aims to: • • • •

create a society where the third sector is widely visible and celebrated for what it achieves enable staff and volunteers to access the resources, skills and contacts to communicate effectively with a wide range of target audiences, and through a wide range of marketing, communications and media outlets to build a solid marketing and communications infrastructure for the sector to develop the marketing and communications skills and capacity of frontline organisations

The major projects delivered as part of this programme are: • • • • •

intensive one-to-one consultations between a communications experts and charities on ways to increase marketing and communications effectiveness marketing and PR training courses designed specially for support providers subsidised places on all Media Trust open-training courses matching charities with volunteer marketing, media and communications professionals professional journalistic support to prepare submissions to Community Newswire (a mechanism to distribute news articles via the Press Association's newsfeed into the newsrooms of regional and national media)

The programme is funded by Capacitybuilders until March 2011. This project: Evaluation Media Trust now wants to answer the following questions: 'what difference has this programme made?' and 'how satisfied are users of the major projects?' (listed above). Project focus The evaluation should provide an overall assessment of the difference made by the programme, as well as more detailed findings for each major project. Required outputs The evaluator(s) shall deliver three outputs:

1. A full report of findings together with recommendations for service improvements 2. An executive summary of the report 3. Updated contact information (if applicable) for Media Trust clients based on responses to the online survey and telephone interviews Media Trust does not have a fixed length for the first two outputs in mind, and will agree a length for each with the commissioned evaluator(s). Updated contact information could be for a maximum of 400 clients, and will need to be supplied in an Excel spreadsheet. In addition to progress meetings with the project lead throughout the work, the evaluator(s) will be asked to organise an initial scoping meeting with Media Trust as well as a final meeting to discuss findings and recommendations with both Media Trust and Capacitybuilders. All meetings will take place in London. Ways of working •

The project should reference and take account of monitoring data already available from Media Trust in relation to this programme.



Regular progress meetings with the project lead.



Where appropriate, meetings with other Media Trust staff, with programme partners and with the programme funder (Capacitybuilders).



Project timeframes should allow for at least one round of detailed comments on both the interim and final draft evaluation reports

Project constraints Timeframe

We need the evaluator(s) to be available to start work in late September. Media Trust would have regular progress meetings with the evaluator(s) throughout September and early October, with an interim report due from the evaluator(s) in late October. The draft final report would be due towards mid November with comments back from Media Trust and Capacitybuilders within a week. The evaluator(s) will address those comments and then submit their final

evaluation report for sign by the end of November. The evaluator(s) would then be expected to meet Media Trust and Capacitybuilders to discuss findings and any recommendations arising from the work. Budget

A maximum of £10,000 - £12,000 is available for this project.

Interfaces Who and what are needed to support the project Project lead

Input from Media Trust staff involved in the programme Input from relevant staff in Capacitybuilders Jessica Medling Head of Charity and Community Projects Media Trust [email protected]

Stakeholders

Media Trust Capacitybuilders (the programme funder)

Audience

The evaluation report is intended for use by Media Trust staff and the programme funder, Capacitybuilders.

Reference to "The marketing and communications needs of charities: associated documents summary report of an in-depth research programme" BPRI for Media Trust, September 2009 http://www.mediatrust.org/about-media-trust/reports/ Information about the National workstream for Marketing and Communications on Capacitybuilders' website: http://www.improvingsupport.org.uk/resources_by_topi c/marketing_and_communications/capacitybuilders_fun ding/marketing_-_comms_workstream.aspx Media Trust online information: http://www.mediatrust.org/get-support/improvingsupport-1/

Project is to be delivered in accordance with the following quality expectations and standards • • • •

Meet with contractual obligations and ‘ways of working’ outlined in this invitation to tender Completed without danger to the reputation of Media Trust Strict observation of client confidentiality throughout Work delivered on time, within budget and to the satisfaction of the client

How to apply Stage 1: Written tenders/project proposals To submit Interested organisations or individuals are invited to submit bids to Media Trust.

Deadline for submission Limits to the tender Format of tenders

Short listed applicants will be interviewed by a panel of Media Trust managers and a staff member from Charities Evaluation Services 3pm on 13 September

• •

All tenders for this evaluation must address: • • • • •

Main assessment areas for written proposal

Electronic submissions only 10 pages A4 maximum (including annexes)

The project focus: your understanding of what is required and how you will undertake this work Areas of assessment, outlined in the box below Relevant costings, including a daily rate and details of any expenses you might incur in the course of the work (e.g. for the online survey) Any possible conflicts of interest together with how you would deal with these; and, An outline timetable for delivery.

Media Trust will assess tenders according to evidence of, 1. Understanding of the project focus 2. Track record of undertaking programme evaluations

3. Experience of designing, running and analysing findings from online survey 4. Research experience 5. Demonstrable ability in project management: working to deadline, delivering projects on budget and ensuring a focus on the client's needs throughout the project To whom tender should be sent

To: Jessica Medling ([email protected]) cc: Sam Gillett ([email protected])

Clarifications to tender

Questions and clarifications about this tender should be submitted to Jessica Medling via email, cc: Sam Gillett. Answers to the queries will then be circulated to all consultants and organisations who have expressed an interest in tendering for the project.

Stage 2: Interviews Interviews

23 September in London

Legal Considerations Copyright for the final publication will rest with Media Trust.