Living Safe TogetherDirectory of CVE Intervention Services—guidelines for applicants

Introduction

Governments, community groups and individuals all need to work together to reduce the risk of vulnerable Australians being affected by violent extremism.

To support this aim, the Australian Government is establishing a Directory of CVE Intervention Services, for use by State/Territory or Commonwealth authorities in tailoring specific intervention programs for individuals in need. The directory is a list of local providers that deliver services (such as mentoring, coaching and counselling, education and employment support, specialised mental health services and other services) that could help individuals to de-radicalise and turn away from ideologies of violence and hate.

This is a key step towards the government's goal of working together to make Australia an even better, safer place to live.

About the directory

The directory will establish a list of service providers who have been assessed by the Attorney-General’s Department (AGD) as satisfying the conditions for participation. Being appointed to the directory does not guarantee that any services or any volume of services will be ordered in the future.

The directory covers the following broad service categories:

·  religious and multi-cultural mentoring

·  specialised mental health services

·  education and employment counselling

·  youth and community work

·  case management

·  telephone and/or online counselling.

Other service categories may be added in future.

How to apply

An overview of the process for applying to be included on the directory is set out below:

·  Download the guidelines, the application form, and the deed.

·  Complete and sign a copy of the deed.

·  Attach two referee reports.

·  Complete the application form.

·  Email the signed deed and completed application form to .

You will be notified by email once your application has been received.

As part of your application, you will need to provide evidence of your capability and capacity to meet the conditions for participation. There is no limitation on the number of times you can apply to be included, if you have previously submitted an unsuccessful application.

Your organisation can submit more than one application if you have multiple innovative services that are each worthy to be considered for inclusion on the directory.

To be successful in applying to be included on the directory, your organisation must clearly demonstrate that your services will assist to divert and disengage individuals from ideologies of violence and hate.

Make sure you follow the Completing the Application Form instructions, provided with the Application Form. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Your application must be signed by a person who has legal authority to represent your organisation or it will be considered an incomplete application.

For more details on the application process, and a link to the application form, visit the Attorney-General’s Department Countering violent extremism website.

When to apply

Applications for the directory open in early January 2015, and will remain open for the following three years. This means that your organisation can apply to be included at any time.

AGD will assess applications periodically throughout the year. The deadlines for upcoming assessment rounds will be advertised on www.livingsafetogether.gov.au.

The first assessment round will take place in late February 2015.

Deed

If your application is successful, you will be required to enter into a deed with AGD. The deed sets out the legal requirements and the process the government will use to purchase services from organisations listed in the directory.

To ensure consistency for all organisations listed on the directory, the terms of the deed are not negotiable. You should thoroughly review the deed before signing and submitting it with your application.

Selection criteria

Applications will be assessed based on:

·  a fully completed application form

·  the level of need for services in your geographical location (whether nationally, regionally or locally based)

·  value-for-money—i.e. an assessment of proposed fees in relation to the service offered

·  security checks— AGD will consult with law enforcement and security agencies to confirm that your organisation has not been implicated in illegal actions (such as providing any kind of support, including financial, to terrorist organisations; advocating the use of violence for political means; and other unlawful activities)

·  referee reports—you must provide reports from and contact details of two (2) referees

·  AGD’s level of confidence that you will be able to deliver effective intervention services during the term of the deed.

In order to be successful, your application will need to satisfactorily address all of the selection criteria detailed below.

Selection criteria
CRITERION 1—APPROACH
The applicant’s approach to delivering the nominated intervention service category / categories
CRITERION 2—DEMONSTRATED EXPERIENCE
The applicant’s demonstrated social work capabilities and experience in undertaking work under the nominated service category as part of community-building programs, highlighting where these services have the potential to make a contribution to the de-radicalisation of people at risk.
CRITERION 3—COMMUNITY AND MULTICULTURAL ENGAGEMENT
The applicant’s demonstrated ability to engage with multi-cultural, religious and community groups relevant to providing the intervention services. Service providers who have existing, trusted relationships with multicultural, religious and community groups should describe the nature of such relationships. Applicants are required to attach two (2) letters of support from community groups which support your application.
CRITERION 4—GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE
The structure of the applicant’s business, including the applicant’s approach to handling complaints, keeping records, managing risk, and managing commercial and financial information, as well as details of any key relationships with other relevant organisations.

Assessment process

Assessments will be conducted by departmental officials—all officers involved in the assessment process will be required to sign a declaration of any conflicts of interest prior to assessing applications.

·  The following are the key stages in the assessment process:

·  Applications are assessed for eligibility—ineligible applications (eg incomplete or incorrectly filled out applications) will not be fully assessed.

·  Referee and security checks are carried out—these will be conducted on all applications recommended for inclusion on the directory.

·  An internal departmental panel of senior executives considers all applications that are recommended for inclusion.

·  All successful and unsuccessful applicants are advised of the funding decision in writing once the process is complete. Unsuccessful applicants may request feedback on their application within one month of being notified of the result.

·  If your application is unsuccessful, you may resubmit an amended application at any time. Your resubmitted application will be considered on the same basis as if it were an original application, in the next appropriate assessment round.

Conditions of participation

Confidentiality of the application process

You must not record, divulge or communicate to any person any confidential information concerning the affairs of the Australian Government in the course of preparing an application.

AGD will ensure that their employees, agents or contractors do not: record, divulge or communicate to any third party any confidential information you provide in your application, unless otherwise required by law.

Compliance with laws and policies

If you are successful, you must comply with all relevant statutes, regulations, by-laws and requirements of Australian, state or territory governments or local authorities. For example, if your organisation is required to work with vulnerable people, your staff must be registered to do so, in accordance with the relevant state or territory laws.

Conflict of interest

A ‘conflict of interest’ means any matter, circumstance, interest or activity involving or affecting your organisation, its personnel or a proposed subcontractor, that may, or may appear to, impair your organisation’s ability to perform the proposed project diligently, fairly and independently. You should list any potential or existing conflicts of interest that may exclude you from being considered for public funding.

Notifications and publication

Due to the sensitive nature of the services provided, directory membership details will not be published on AusTender, the AGD website, or by any other means.

Any notifications or information relevant to you will be communicated by email. It is your responsibility to continue to monitor your nominated email inbox for notifications.

Rights of the Attorney-General’s Department

AGD reserves the right to:

·  email you to clarify the meaning of content in your application

·  terminate or suspend this process

·  alter or change this process, including the conditions of participation or the requirements of the application
and/or

·  request additional information.

No contractual arrangements

Nothing in the application will be construed to create any binding contract (express or implied) between the Commonwealth and any applicant, until an order is placed by the Commonwealth with the successful applicant(s).

Cost

You are responsible for any costs in preparing or submitting an application and taking part in this application process.

Insurance

If you are successful, you must maintain adequate insurance to provide services on the directory.

Requests for clarification

You may seek clarification from the department on the meaning of content relating to the application process. You must make these requests in writing via email to .

Taxation

AGD does not provide advice on GST matters. You should seek advice from a qualified professional or the Australian Taxation Office (www.ato.gov.au).

Enquiries or complaints

Applicants should direct any enquiries or complaints to:
Assistant Secretary
National Security Policy and Capability Branch
Attorney-General’s Department
3-5 National Circuit
BARTON ACT 2600

Or via email to

More information

For more information, visit

www.livingsafetogether.gov.au.

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