Independent Evaluation of the ‘Creating a Greener London – Sustainable Construction Skills’ Programme

Invitation to Tender (ITT)

The Association of Colleges (AoC), with support from JPMorgan Chase is launching an Invitation to Tender (ITT) for an Independent Evaluation of the ‘Creating a Greener London – Sustainable Construction Skills’ programme.

The ‘Creating a Greener London- Sustainable Construction Skills’ programme seeks to develop innovative, local approaches to the delivery of green skills training. The project will be delivered from March 2023 until September 2025, with an additional two years evaluation and tracking of student post-delivery, until 2027. The programme is targeted at young people from lower socio-economic backgrounds, studying in low-level provision, to enable them to access skilled, green jobs in the construction sector.

The Association of Colleges (AoC) in partnership with JPMorgan Chase Foundation will commission two pilot projects within Greater London. The pilots will establish local collaborative partnerships to identify existing and emerging green job opportunities, and the skills required from Level 2, which enable progression to green employment in the construction sector.

The purpose of this invitation to tender is to commission an independent evaluation of the overall programme and individual pilot project success in achieving the intended impact, over the four-year period. The external evaluation should seek to understand the impact of the pilot programmes on all beneficiaries and the essential ingredients for the programmes success to share across the sector. The evaluation should also evaluate success across post-project success measures, including participating students sustained into Level 3 study, apprenticeships and employment.

Frequently asked questions

Can we have an extension on the submission deadline?

No. Extensions will not be awarded due to the tight time frame that the project is working to as well as ensuring fairness is given to all applicants. The deadline for all applications is midday on Friday 14 July 2023.

Can I send a hard copy of my application or email it in pdf format?

No, applications are only accepted in a word document format and emailed to the projects team – projects@aoc.co.uk Applications received in any other formats will not be accepted or marked.

When will I find out if our application has been successful?

If further information is required before a decision is made you may be contacted week beginning 17 July 2023. All applicants, both successful and unsuccessful, will be contacted by Midday Friday 28 July 2023.

Who do I contact for further information?

If you have any further questions please do not hesitate to email the project team before the Wednesday 12 July 2023 deadline – projects@aoc.co.uk. Any questions asked will be published on the website anonymously, for all applicants to view.

What is the budget for the evaluation and what is the overall project value?

We requested quotations for the evaluation because during market research we found there to be a large variation in the budgets proposed. We appreciate that some steer is required though.

The overall contract value is between £30,000 and £60,000. We unable to disclose details of the overall project budget.

Because we appreciate that this is a large range, we request that a detailed breakdown of costs (by year) is provided so that we are able to compare tenders.

Competitive bids are encouraged and cost will be a consideration in evaluating applications, however greatest consideration will be given to the content of the application.

Applications close at midday on Friday 14 July 2023.