Brief for the Create+ Evaluation and Needs Analysis Report
1. Executive Summary
West London-based regeneration charity, Vital Regeneration is seeking to
commission a suitably qualified consultant to produce an Evaluation Report on its
Create+ programme between September and November 2011. Vital Regeneration
is generously supported by the JP Morgan Chase Foundation in commissioning
this evaluation of Create+.
This brief:

gives background information about Create+ and Vital Regeneration;

sets out the intended scope of the evaluation;

describes research methodologies it is anticipated the consultant will use;

explains how we will select a writer/researcher;

sets out a research and report production schedule; and

details the payment process for this commission.
2. Background to Create+ and Vital Regeneration
Introduction to Create+
The Create+ programme captures young people's interest through the 'hooks' of
music production and film making, with participants using industry-standard
equipment and high quality learning facilities. The programme provides a bridge
for 14 to 19 year olds who have not achieved qualifications, to enable them to
engage with ongoing training and employment opportunities.
Create+ builds the literacy skills of young people who are not in education,
employment or training (NEET) or who are at risk of being NEET, and effectively
reconnects them to mainstream education or work. Working with participants to
develop their technical and communication
skills, the programme enhances their team
building capability and networks. Create+ also
builds young people's confidence, motivation,
aspiration and resilience.
Introduction to Vital Regeneration
Vital Regeneration is an award-winning charity
with a mission to bring about positive change
for people living in London’s most deprived
neighbourhoods. We were established as a
charity in 2005 to address poverty and
disadvantage faced by people in the most
disadvantaged wards in the borough.
Embedded in the heart of disadvantaged communities, we deliver innovative,
sustainable programmes that engage local people in learning, employability,
enterprise and green/eco. schemes. We are based in the north of the City of
Westminster, with activities delivered further afield into Hammersmith & Fulham,
Kensington & Chelsea, Brent and Camden.
1
In just six years, we have increased our programme of activities
than 3,000 disadvantaged people. This includes a high proportion
diverse cultural backgrounds, homeless and unemployed adults,
children, young people & families, the elderly, and people
difficulties.
to reach more
of people from
disadvantaged
with learning
Our aims are to:

ensure people who are most disadvantaged have access to learning and
employment opportunities to develop their potential;

be the ‘Community Anchor’ to support people in local communities to work
together to be their own agents for change;

engage disadvantaged communities to participate in decisions that affect
them; and

be an authoritative
disadvantaged areas.
voice
on
social
and
economic
regeneration
is
Our programme of activities is rooted in the local community and designed in
partnership with local people to respond to their needs. In 2010:

More than 13,000 people accessed services delivered by us, and by local
community groups out of the centres that we manage. Activities included free
IT lessons, fitness clubs, over 50s clubs and community festivals.

370 primary school children participated in our popular healthy eating and
healthy living after-school activities: Play Space, Eco-Kids and Edible Garden
clubs to promote understanding of food
and exercise whilst developing an
understanding of environmental issues.

Our Homelessness, Employment and
Learning Project, provided advice and
support to 130 homeless people to help
them
into
work,
training
and
volunteering to
improve their life
prospects and those of their children.

1,000 households participated in our
community composting and recycling initiative, which, provided jobs for local
people and galvanised local people living on social housing estates to compost
130 tonnes of food waste that would otherwise have ended up in landfill.

Create+, our flagship educational learning programme helped 40
disadvantaged young people who are not in work or education. Learning to
make a music track or short-film is proven to work as a ‘kick-start’ to help
develop young people’s interest in learning.

Our Westminster Works programme supported 380 unemployed people,
helping 205 into work, volunteering or training.
3. Contents of the Report
Aim
The aims of the Evaluation and Needs Analysis Report are to provide a detailed
picture of:

the programme’s strengths and weaknesses;

the impact it has had to date;
2

the changing picture of need in the geographic areas we are working in;

the programme’s Value for Money; and

how innovative the programme is and how to continue to innovate it.
Audiences
Vital Regeneration will use this report as an internal management tool to make
both strategic and operational decisions about improving the programme’s quality
and developing it/scaling it. We will also use it to promote Create+ to
stakeholders, funders and partners so as to raise awareness of the programme’s
impact and to generate further interest, funding and support for it.
We will require two versions of the report to be produced; one for external
communications and one for internal planning. We will ask the researcher to map
out a list of appropriate external stakeholders for Vital Regeneration to send this
report to on completion.
Scope
We expect the Evaluation Report to cover the following elements:

a summary of the programme and its delivery model;

a summary of the need that the programme is responding to;

the programme’s aims and intended impact;

hard outputs achieved;

hard and soft outcomes achieved – including beneficiary progression and
sustained progression;

beneficiary demographics – who the programme is helping;

the programme’s cost and its Value for Money – including how much
organisations would value Create+ at if they had to pay for the service;

NEET and at risk of NEET numbers in our target boroughs – and the
areas/learning establishments with highest concentrations of them; and

services, organisations and educational establishments being accessed by our
target client group.
To give us the sharpest picture of our impact over time, we are asking the
researcher to report on Create+ delivery since 2006 but to carry out a more
detailed study on current Create+ courses that JP Morgan Chase Foundation is
funding, as one of their aims in commissioning this evaluation is to see the
impact their funding has had.
Methodology
The successful consultant will be expected to work closely with Create+ staff and
beneficiaries to research and gather source material and contextual information.
Vital Regeneration will provide the following source material to the consultant to
aid the production of the evaluation.

Impact reports

Case studies

Learner evaluations

Demographic and quality data

Access to programme beneficiaries,
staff, freelances and volunteers
3

Progression tracking and pastoral support tracking spreadsheets

Work produced by students on courses

Feedback from beneficiaries, stakeholders and delivery partners
Given that Create+ is a high profile, innovative, creative media programme we
would like the Evaluation and Needs Analysis Report to be presented in a creative
and visually stimulating way.
4. Commissioning Information
Schedule for Commissioning the Report
Deadline
Milestone
24 Aug ‘11
Advertise this commission externally.
5 Sep
Prospective writers/researchers to send application pack to Vital
Regeneration. Pack to include:

A CV

An evaluation/report they have previously produced (we are
particularly interested in seeing creative approaches to this)

A supporting statement of why they would be most suitable to
undertake this commission.
5-12 Sep
Vital Regeneration to contact tenderers with points of clarification.
12 Sep
Shortlisted candidates to attend an interview at Vital
Regeneration’s offices in Marylebone, London. Shortlisted
candidates will be asked to give a 15 minute presentation about:

Methodologies they would use to produce the report;

How they would structure their work between Sep and Nov;

How they would present the final report
There will be an interview and candidates will be asked for two
referees Vital Regeneration can contact for references.
16 Sep
Vital Regeneration to select the successful candidate and to
communicate that to all shortlisted applicants.
19-21 Sep
Inception meeting – Vital Regeneration and successful candidate to
agree the process for researching and producing the report.
Contract to be signed.
Schedule for Producing the Report
Deadline
Milestone
Payment
Milestone
19–21
Sep 2011
Inception meeting – Vital Regeneration and
successful candidate to agree the process for
researching and producing the report. Contract
to be signed. Research to begin.
Yes - £1,500
10-24 Oct
2011
Progress review meeting
Yes - £1,500
2 Nov
Draft
report
to
be
submitted
to
Vital
Yes - £2,000
4
2011
Regeneration – including breakdown of contents
for internal and external versions of report
8 Nov
2011
Draft report review meeting. All parties to agree
on schedule and plan for finalising the report.
No
15 Nov
2011
Complete version report to be submitted to Vital
Regeneration – including breakdown of contents
for internal and external versions of report
Yes - £3,000
21 Nov
2011
Final changes to be made to report as agreed
and final report to be submitted to Vital
Regeneration.
Yes - £4,000
30 Nov
2011
Vital Regeneration to publish the report and to
send it out to external stakeholders.
No
Payment Details
On completion of the milestones listed above to a standard agreed as satisfactory
by Vital Regeneration, the consultant will raise an invoice for payment by BACs.
Vital Regeneration has standard payment terms of 28 days in arrears.
5. Person Specification
The successful consultant will have experience of:

researching and authoring reports and/or evaluations in the field of NEETs/
creative technology/Skills for Life, informal education or a relevant field;

successfully conducting qualitative research with stakeholders, ranging from
beneficiaries to staff to funders;

completing similar commissions to an extremely high standard within budget
and within the given time-frame;

producing reports/ evaluations in a creative and innovative way; and

working with the voluntary sector.
The successful consultant will be required to undergo an Enhanced CRB check as
the role will involve working with young people and data relating to them.
6. Contact Details
Further questions about this commission should be directed to Katy Haigh,
Deputy Chief Executive - kchaigh@vitalregen.org, 07825 017 837. Application
packs should also be sent via email to Katy by 2 September 2011.
5