English and Vocational Training Consultancy

1 Introduction
1.1 The British Council, whose principal offices are in Spring Gardens, London, SW1A 2BN and Bridgewater House, 58 Whitworth Street, Manchester, M1 6BB, invites the provision of consultancy and training services to conduct English and Vocational training as part of the EU-funded project DAWRIC: Direct Action for Women: Reform, Inclusion and Confidence.

2 Background information relevant to the proposal
2.1 British Council’s programme in Middle East and North Africa
British Council programmes are being implemented in all the Middle East and North Africa Region, focusing mainly on Education, Arts, English Language and Society. This tender comes under our Society work, where we support societies whose citizens and institutions contribute to a more inclusive, open and prosperous world. In MENA, we provide opportunities for various societies around participation, social innovation and entrepreneurship as well as developing new ways of building cultural relations impact at the local and international level. We support women and young people to gain skills, be confident, active and engage in their communities as well as contributing to strengthening the abilities of individuals and organisations to play a role in local and global sustainable development.

2.2 DAWRIC Project: Direct Action for Women: Reform, Inclusion and Confidence
The British Council is implementing a European Union funded project entitled DAWRIC: Direct Action for Women: Reform, Inclusion and Confidence, aiming to improve women’s political and economic participation at a national level.
DAWRIC overall objective is to build the capacity of women and broad-based support for their active involvement in public life to:
- combat poverty among Lebanese women
- ensure gender equality in political life and decision-making processes
Within the scope of DAWRIC project, the capacity building program for increased women economic participation and poverty reduction includes the delivery of English and Vocational training courses to 150 women in order to provide them with the knowledge, skills and competencies required in the job market. Therefore, the proposed intervention will offer skills trainings including vocational skills and English courses that are designed to fit the needs of the market place and will help the women to enter the labour force, access income generation opportunities and build their self-confidence in becoming an equal economic actor.
The training program will be delivered to women beneficiaries selected from the 21 towns located in North, South, Bekaa, Beirut and Mount Lebanon.

2.3 Specification of services to be supplied
The British Council is seeking a service provider/consultancy firm/NGO to deliver the English and Vocational training program under DAWRIC project as per the below staged phase process:

Phase 1: Needs assessment and recruitment in September 2018
- Conduct needs assessment to identify the needs of the targeted community in order to design a capacity building plan including vocational and English language courses and to possibly identify other community needs to inform future programing.
- Develop a capacity building plan based on the needs assessment results’ analysis, including vocational training topics and English language courses
- Develop and implement the selection and recruitment process of 150 women from DAWRIC targeted areas to benefit from the training program, in close coordination with the British Council
- Recruit/appoint trainers for the vocational and English language trainings as per the topics identified in the capacity building plan
- Select and arrange venues to conduct the trainings in coordination with the municipalities and local NGOs involved in DAWRIC

Phase 2: Trainings delivery in October and November 2018
Design and implement the series of English and Vocational training sessions
- Develop the training manuals to be shared with the participants
- Implement the capacity building plan in the targeted areas benefiting 150 women
- Submit the end-of-assignment report highlighting the training outcomes, Pre and post training evaluation results, challenges and recommendations
- Collect 10 success stories from the women beneficiaries to highlight the improvement and change observed within the community (i.e. establishing partnerships with micro-credit institutions, support in 1) developing business ideas, 2) financial management, 3) application process for micro-credit, 4) others)

2.4 Content of the proposal
In your proposal, please include the following:
- Your understanding of the assignment and the experience you can bring to the development of this project
- Your proposed approach to the assignment including process for needs assessment and outline of the content for the English and vocational training and ongoing support
- Developing your outreach strategies
- Identify your design and delivery team, briefly indicating their track record and experience
- Identify your experience of and/or familiarity of working internationally, in particular in with partners in the Middle East and North Africa (particularly Egypt, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia), if any
- Experience of working with programmes and vocational training supporting women’s participation and empowerment.

2.5 Reporting/Duration
The consultant will be contracted by the British Council and will be managed by the Senior Project Manager and will work on close coordination with the Project Coordinator in Beirut Lebanon.

3 Documentation required during the lifetime of the contract
3.1 The British Council will require the supplier to provide copies of any and all documentation produced during the contract, which may include and not be limited to:
- Needs Assessment mechanisms and tools
- Workshop materials
- Feedback forms
- Guidance documents/toolkits for project teams and research leads
- Evaluation documents and reports

3.2. The British Council will own the intellectual property rights of all materials produced during the consultancy.

4. Minimum terms and conditions of contract
Proposals must expressly accept the British Council’s minimum Terms and Conditions (see Appendix 2). If you have any reservations these must be stated at the time of submitting the proposal.

5. Structure and receipt of the proposal
a. Please submit your proposal according to the following structure:
- Section 1: Your understanding of the assignment and your approach to delivery.
- Section 2: Experience (level and breadth of provider’s expertise; experience internationally including the Middle East, track record; cultural awareness);
- Section 3: Capability and capacity (depth and capability of specialist services; demonstrate ability to transfer skills and experience; qualifications and experience of staff who will work on the project;
- Section 4: Approach and method: (how the terms of reference will be delivered);
- Section 5: Relationship management (how the BC will be managed as a client; expected roles and responsibilities with respect to project partners);
- Section 6: Costs (fees for design and delivery and identification of any other associated costs. Please include daily rates/no of days for each expert proposed)

b. Submit your proposal electronically to Nayla El Khoury at the following e-mail address: [email protected]

c. Any questions relating to the submission of proposals should be made by e-mail (only) to Nayla El Khoury at the above e-mail address before 24 August.

5.5 Completed proposals should arrive no later than 5 pm on Friday 24 August. Proposals arriving after the deadline will not be evaluated. The submitted proposals will be evaluated by the evaluation committee and the preferred service provider/consultancy firm/NGO will be selected and contacted by the first week of September 2018.

6 Criteria for acceptance and evaluation of proposals
a. The proposal must be returned in accordance with the guidelines on proposal structure (see paragraph 5a above). Failure to comply with the guidance will eliminate your proposal from consideration.

b. The proposal will be evaluated against the following criteria:
- Evidence of experience and track record
- Evidence of capability and capacity in Entrepreneurship and capacity building of others to cascade the training
- Clear and effective methodology for achieving the requirements of the terms of reference
- Practical and effective ways of working in partnership with the British Council team
- Quality of staff proposed for delivery of project including evidence of effective design and delivery of comparable pieces of work
- Price (maximum of EUR 30,000 covering all the consultancy fees)

7. Miscellaneous
a. This invitation to tender is not an offer or guarantee of award of business.
b. All costs incurred in the preparation of the bid are the bidder’s responsibility.

8. Confidentiality
The contents of this invitation to tender are confidential and will not be disclosed to a third party.

Appendix 2 British Council Standard Terms
1 Interpretation
1.1 In this Agreement:

• “Charges” means the charges, fees and any other sums payable by the British Council to the Supplier
• “Control” means the ability to direct the affairs of another party whether by virtue of the ownership of shares, contract or otherwise (and “Controlled” shall be construed accordingly);
• “Deliverables” means all Documents, products and materials developed or provided by the Supplier as part of providing the Services (including, without limitation, the Transferred Deliverables);
• “Document” means (whether in hard copy or electronic format) any document, drawing, map, plan, diagram, design, picture or other image, tape, disk, or other device or record embodying information in any form;
• “End Client Agreement” means the agreement (if any) between the end client (if any) and the British Council relating to the project in connection with which the Supplier is providing its Services as a sub-contractor;
• “End Client Requirements” means the specific requirements of the end client (if any) or as notified to the Supplier in writing;
• “Premises” means, where applicable, the premises or location where the Services are to be provided, as notified by the British Council to the Supplier;
• “Relevant Person” means any individual employed or engaged by the Supplier and involved in the provision of the Services, or any agent or contractor or sub-contractor of the Supplier who is involved in the provision of the Services and includes, without limitation, the Key Personnel (if any);
• “Services” means the services to be provided by the Supplier under this Agreement as set out in the Special Terms (Schedule 1) and/or the Specification and
• “Transferred Deliverables” means (where applicable) the Deliverables which are described as “Transferred Deliverables” in the Special Terms and/or the Specification or in respect of which this Agreement otherwise provides that ownership of Intellectual Property Rights is to be assigned to the British Council.

1.2 Any headings in this Agreement shall not affect the interpretation of this Agreement.

1.3 A reference to a statute or statutory provision is a reference to it as it is in force for the time being, taking account of any amendment, extension, or re-enactment and includes any subordinate legislation for the time being in force made under it.

1.4 References to “Working Days” and “Working Hours” are, subject to any provisions to the contrary in the Special Terms, references to normal business days and normal business hours in the territory in which the Supplier is providing the Services.

2 Supplier’s Responsibilities
2.1 The Supplier shall:
1.1.1 provide the Services and the Goods, and deliver the Deliverables to the British Council, with reasonable skill, care and ability in accordance with the terms of this Agreement (and, in particular, the Special Terms (Schedule 1) and the Specification (and with the reasonable instructions of the British Council, and shall allocate sufficient resources to the Services to enable it to comply with this obligation;

1.1.2 deliver the Goods to the delivery point and on the delivery date as notified to the Supplier (and time shall be of the essence for delivery);

1.1.3 comply with the end client Requirements (if any) and shall do nothing to put the British Council in breach of the end client Requirements (if any);

1.1.4 treat the terms of this Agreement and any information of a confidential nature relating to the British Council as confidential;

1.1.5 comply in all material respects with the Data Protection Act 1998 (or any equivalent legislation in any applicable jurisdiction);

1.1.6 maintain records relating to this Agreement for seven (7) years following the year in which this Agreement terminates or expires and allow the British Council and/or any end client access to those records on reasonable notice and at reasonable times for audit purposes;

1.1.7 obtain the British Council’s prior written consent to all promotional activity or publicity and act at all times in accordance with the British Council’s reasonable instructions relating to such activity or publicity;

1.1.8 comply with all applicable legislation and codes of practice relating to diversity, ethnicity, equality, non-discrimination and human rights in force in England and Wales and any other territory in which the Services and the Goods are to be provided;

1.1.9 take out and maintain during the term of this Agreement appropriate insurance cover in respect of its activities under this Agreement and, on request, provide the British Council with evidence that such insurance cover is in place;

1.1.10 not, without the British Council’s consent, assign or otherwise transfer any of its rights or obligations under this Agreement;

1.1.11 be entitled to use such parts of the Premises on a non-exclusive basis as the British Council may from time to time designate as are necessary for the performance of the Services provided that use of the Premises is strictly in accordance with the British Council’s reasonable instructions and is to be solely for the purposes of providing the Services

1.1.12 promptly notify the British Council of any health and safety hazards which may arise in connection with the performance of this Agreement, take such steps as are reasonably necessary to ensure the health and safety of persons likely to be affected by the performance of the Services and notify the British Council of any incident occurring on the Premises or otherwise in connection with the provision of the Services which causes or could give rise to personal injury.

2.2 Where the Supplier is not an individual, it shall provide one or more Relevant Person(s) to provide the Services and shall procure that such Relevant Person(s) comply with the terms of this Agreement to the extent that such terms are applicable to such Relevant Person(s). Notwithstanding the deployment of any such Relevant Person(s), the Supplier shall remain wholly liable to the British Council and shall be responsible for all acts and omissions (howsoever arising) in the performance of the Services. The British Council may, in its discretion, require the Relevant Person(s) to enter into direct undertakings with the British Council including, without limitation, with regard to confidentiality and intellectual property.

2.3 The Supplier warrants that the Goods shall: (a) conform to the Specification in Schedule 2; (b) be of satisfactory quality (within the meaning of the Sale of Goods Act 1979, as amended) and fit for any purpose held out by the Supplier or made known to the Supplier by the British Council; (c) be free from defects in design, material and workmanship and remain so for 12 months after delivery; and (d) comply with all applicable statutory and regulatory requirements.

2.4 Risk and title in the Goods delivered to the British Council shall pass to the British Council on delivery.

3 Status
3.1 The relationship of the Supplier to the British Council will be that of independent contractor and nothing in this Agreement shall render the Supplier or any Relevant Person an employee, worker, agent or partner of the British Council and the Supplier shall not hold itself out as such.

3.2 This Agreement constitutes a contract for the provision of services and not a contract of employment and accordingly the Supplier shall be fully responsible for and shall indemnify the British Council for and in respect of payment of the following within the prescribed time limits:

1.1.13 any tax (including, without limitation, VAT), National Insurance contributions or similar impost or payment of a fiscal nature arising from or made in connection with either the performance of the Services, or any payment or benefit received by the Supplier in respect of the Services; and

1.1.14 any liability for any employment-related claim or any claim based on worker status (including reasonable costs and expenses) brought by the Supplier (or, where applicable, any Relevant Person) against the British Council arising out of or in connection with the provision of the Services, except where such claim is as a result of any act or omission of the British Council.

4 Price and Payment
4.1 Unless stated otherwise, the Charges are exclusive of value added tax (VAT) or any equivalent sales tax in any applicable jurisdiction.

4.2 Unless stated otherwise, the Supplier shall invoice for the Charges monthly in arrears and all such invoices shall be accompanied by a statement setting out the Services and/or Goods supplied in the relevant month in sufficient detail to justify the Charges charged.

4.3 Subject to clause 4.5 below, the British Council shall, unless agreed otherwise by the parties in writing, pay each of the Supplier’s valid and accurate invoices by automated transfer into the Supplier’s nominated bank account no later than 30 days after the invoice is received.

4.4 Where there is an end client, the British Council shall not be obliged to pay any invoice to the extent that it has not received payment relating to that invoice from the end client.

4.5 If the British Council fails to pay any sum properly due and payable (other than any sum disputed in good faith) by the due date for payment, the Supplier may charge interest on the amount of any such late payment at the rate of 1% per annum above the base rate from time to time of HSBC Plc, such interest to accrue from the date on which payment was due to the date on which payment is actually made. The parties hereby acknowledge and agree that such rate of interest is a substantial remedy for any late payment of any sum properly due and payable.

5 Change Control
5.1 If either party wishes to change the scope or provision of the Services, it shall submit details of the requested change to the other in writing and such change shall only be implemented if agreed in writing by both parties acting reasonably.

6 Intellectual Property Rights
6.1 Where any intellectual property rights owned or licensed by the British Council are required to be used in connection with the provision of the Services or Goods, the Supplier acknowledges that it shall have no right to use the same except to the extent necessary for the provision of the Services or Goods and subject to such consents and restrictions as may be specified by the British Council.

6.2 The Supplier hereby assigns (with full title guarantee) to the British Council ownership of any intellectual property rights in the Transferred Deliverables and shall procure the waiver in favour of the British Council of all moral rights relating to the Transferred Deliverables. The Supplier undertakes at the British Council’s request and expense to execute all deeds and documents which may reasonably be required to vest such rights in the British Council and to give effect to this clause 6.2.

6.3 The Supplier hereby grants to the British Council an irrevocable, royalty-free non-exclusive licence of any intellectual property rights in the Deliverables (excluding the Transferred Deliverables) for the purposes of receiving and using, and to the extent necessary to receive and use, the Services and the Goods in accordance with this Agreement.

6.4 The Supplier warrants that the provision of the Services or Goods does not and will not infringe any third party’s Intellectual Property Rights.

7 Limitation of Liability
7.1 Nothing in this Agreement shall exclude or restrict the liability of either party to the other for death or personal injury resulting from negligence or for fraudulent misrepresentation or in any other circumstances where liability may not be limited under any applicable law.

7.2 Subject to clause 7.1, neither party shall be liable to the other whether in contract, tort, negligence, breach of statutory duty or otherwise for any indirect loss or damage, costs or expenses whatsoever or howsoever arising out of or in connection with this Agreement.

7.3 Subject to clauses 7.1 and 7.2, the British Council’s sole liability under this Agreement shall be to pay to the Supplier the Charges as and when they become payable (plus any late payment interest properly chargeable under the terms of this Agreement).
 

8 Force Majeure
8.1 Neither party shall be in breach of this Agreement if it is prevented from or delayed in carrying on its business by acts, events, omissions or accidents beyond its reasonable control.

9 Termination
9.1 Without prejudice to any other rights or remedies which the British Council may have, the British Council may terminate this Agreement without liability to the Supplier immediately on giving notice to the Supplier if:
1.1.15 the performance of the Services is delayed, hindered or prevented by circumstances of force majeure (as described in clause 8) for a period in excess of 28 days;

1.1.16 where the Supplier is a company, there is a change of Control of the Supplier; or

1.1.17 the Supplier or any Relevant Person is:

1.1.1.1 incapacitated (including by reason of illness or accident) from providing the Services for an aggregate period of five (5) Working Days in any two (2) week consecutive period;

1.1.1.2 convicted of any criminal offence (other than an offence under any road traffic legislation in the United Kingdom or elsewhere for which a fine or non-custodial penalty is imposed);

1.1.1.3 in the reasonable opinion of the British Council or the end client (if any) negligent and incompetent in the performance of the Services; or

1.1.1.4 guilty of any fraud, dishonesty or serious misconduct.

9.2 Either party may give notice in writing to the other terminating this Agreement with immediate effect if:
1.1.18 the other party commits any material breach of any of the terms of this Agreement and that breach (if capable of remedy) is not remedied within 30 days of notice being given requiring it to be remedied (and where such breach is not capable of remedy, the terminating party shall be entitled to terminate the Agreement with immediate effect);

1.1.19 the other party becomes (or, in the reasonable opinion of the terminating party, is at serious risk of becoming) insolvent or unable to pay its debts as they fall due.
9.3 The British Council shall be entitled to terminate this Agreement at any time by serving not less than 30 days’ written notice on the Supplier.

9.4 Termination of this Agreement, however it arises, shall not affect or prejudice the accrued rights of the parties as at termination or the continuation of any provision expressly stated to survive, or implicitly surviving, termination.

10 Assignment
10.1 The British Council may assign or novate this Agreement to: (i) any separate entity Controlled by the British Council; (ii) any body or department which succeeds to those functions of the British Council to which this Agreement relates; or (iii) any provider of outsourcing or third party services that is employed under a service contract to provide services to the British Council. The Supplier warrants and represents that it will (at the British Council’s reasonable expense) execute all such documents and carry out all such acts, as reasonably required to give effect to this clause 10.1.

11 Governing Law and Dispute Resolution Procedure
11.1 This Agreement and any dispute or claim (including any non-contractual dispute or claim) arising out of or in connection with it or its subject matter, shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of England and Wales.

11.2 Subject to the remainder of this clause 11, the parties irrevocably agree that the courts of England and Wales shall have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute or claim (including any non-contractual dispute or claim) that arises out of or in connection with this Agreement or its subject matter.

11.3 In the event that any claim or dispute arises out of or in connection with this Agreement, the parties shall, following service of written notice by one party on the other, attempt to resolve amicably by way of good faith negotiations and discussions any such dispute or claim as soon as reasonably practicable (and in any event within 10 working days after such notice or by such later date as the parties may otherwise agree in writing). If the parties are unable to resolve the dispute or claim in accordance with this clause 11.3, either party may commence proceedings in accordance with clause 11.2.

11.4 Nothing in this clause 11 shall prevent either party from applying at any time to the court for injunctive relief on the grounds of infringement, or threatened infringement, of the other party's obligations of confidentiality contained in this Agreement or infringement, or threatened infringement, of the applicant's Intellectual Property Rights.

12 General
12.1 Subject to clause 5, no variation of this Agreement shall be valid unless it is in writing and signed by or on behalf of each of the parties.

12.2 A waiver of any right under this Agreement is only effective if it is in writing and it applies only to the party to whom the waiver is addressed and the circumstances for which it is given.

12.3 Nothing in this Agreement is intended to, or shall operate to, create a partnership between the parties, or to authorise either party to act as agent for the other, and neither party shall have authority to act in the name or on behalf of or otherwise to bind the other in any way (including the making of any representation or warranty, the assumption of any obligation or liability and the exercise of any right or power) and neither party shall incur any expenditure in the name of or for the account of the other.

12.4 This Agreement does not create any rights or benefits enforceable by any person not a party to it (within the meaning of The Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999.

12.5 Notice given under this Agreement shall be in writing, sent for the attention of the person, and to the address, given on the front page of this Agreement) (or such other address or person as the relevant party may notify to the other party) and shall be delivered either personally, by courier, by pre-paid, first-class post or by recorded delivery. A notice is deemed to have been received: if delivered personally, at the time of delivery; in the case of pre-paid first class post, recorded delivery or courier, 48 hours from the date of posting. If deemed receipt under this clause 12.5 is not within Working Hours the notice will be deemed to be received at the commencement of normal Working Hours, on the first Working Day following delivery. To prove service of notice, it is sufficient to prove that the envelope containing the notice was properly addressed and posted or handed to the courier.