Specification for Needs Assessment

Developing a better understanding of patterns of domestic abuse and violence against women and girls across the Tri-boroughs, the extent of current provision to support victims, survivors and their families, and to support and hold perpetrators to account, to inform domestic abuse commissioning and service delivery for 2014-17

Contents

Background

Outcomes

Key Principles

Methodology & Scope of Work

Quote Submission

Evaluation Criteria

Quality (60%)

Knowledge & Experience (30%)

Proposal (70%)

Cost (40%)

Background

Tackling Violence against Women & Girls (VAWG) is a strategic priority for each of the Tri-borough Councils; Hammersmith & Fulham, Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea and City of Westminster.Understanding the local nature of VAWG and how it impacts on individuals, families and communities is crucial to ensuring that high-quality and cost effective services are delivered across the Tri-borough area.

Hammersmith & Fulham, the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and Westminster City Council have combined some services on a Bi and Tri-borough basis to save management costs and protect frontline services.

In tackling VAWG, the Tri-borough Council’s to adhere to the Home Office definition of domestic violence which states that domestic violence is:

Any incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, coercive or threatening behaviour, violence or abuse between those aged 16 or over who are or have been intimate partners or family members regardless of gender or sexuality. This can encompass but is not limited to the following types of abuse:

psychological
physical
sexual
financial
emotional

Controlling behaviour is: a range of acts designed to make a person subordinate and/or dependent by isolating them from sources of support, exploiting their resources and capacities for personal gain, depriving them of the means needed for independence, resistance and escape and regulating their everyday behaviour.

Coercive behaviour is: an act or a pattern of acts of assault, threats, humiliation and intimidation or other abuse that is used to harm, punish, or frighten their victim.”[1]

As part of the recent call for proposals for the Mayor’s Office for Police & Crime (MOPAC) London Crime Prevention Fund, we have begun to look closely at VAWG commissioned services across the Tri-borough area to begin to identify any cost savings, service improvements or efficiencies. These services include Domestic Violence Advocacy (IDVA), Multi-agency Risk Assessment (MARAC), Domestic Violence Courts (DVC), perpetrator programmes, and specific services for Arabic speakers. Services are delivered by a range of experienced providers with different contractual arrangements on a sovereign, Tri and Bi-borough basis.

In order to ensure that we make the best use of resources across the Tri-borough area and effectively commission and target services based upon need, we have chosen to commission a comprehensive Tri-borough area VAWG Needs Assessment. It is intended that this will be used as the evidence base for future service configuration, commissioning and partnership arrangements.

Our intention is to use the needs assessment process to:

instigate greater collaboration and responsibility for achieving the shared outcomes and commissioning priorities that result
drive greater accountability for addressing VAWG issues across a wider range of public sector partners
create positive change for local people - a coordinated community response (CCR).

Furthermore, as part of our work to tackle re-offending a provide support to short sentenced prisoners, we have begun discussions with the Ministry of Justice to consider how services aimed at victims and survivors of domestic abuse could also help to support female offenders when they come out of custody. The vast majority of female offenders have experienced some form of violence or abuse either childhood sexual exploitation, or domestic abuse. We would therefore also like to use this needs assessment to look more closely at this group, what their needs are and what services are available to them.

Outcomes

The specific aims of this needs assessment are to:

Define the wider strategic and policy context (both regional and national) within which the Tri-borough area Council’s should tackle Violence Against Women & Girls
Identify and report on the prevalence and nature of violence against women and girls across the Tri-borough Councils taking into consideration the groups below:
Victims/survivors
Families
Children
Perpetrators
Identify and assess the efficacy of existing service responses, both specialist and those mainstreamed across the Tri-borough areas, in particular whether services are adequately meeting the needs of those victims aged 16-17 who now fall within the national definition
Establish a series of recommendations for future commissioning approaches, policy and service improvements. This should take into consideration innovation and best practice to maximise the use of current and future resources, improved strategic co-ordination and CCR across the tri borough area.
Within these recommendations, to consider the applicability of utilising services to address Violence Against Women & Girls, to support female offenders sentenced to, and released from custody

Key Principles

The needs assessment should be driven by a number of key principles that inform our approach and/or that run throughout the outcomes and deliverables including:

Prioritising the safety of children is paramount
Gender Based – accounts for the different experiences and needs of victims/survivors by gender
Victim / Survivor Involvement – victims, survivors and their families are at the heart of the Tri-borough area response to Violence Against Women & Girls and as such their views are a critical component which cuts across every aspect of the needs assessment
Empowering the Victim / Survivor to take more control is central to our approach
Hold perpetrators to account for their behaviour
A Human Rights approach particularly the rights of the child
Responding to the issues that VAWG presents is the responsibility of all professionals. Not just those working within the “specialist VAWG sector”.
Equality of opportunity for victims/survivors.
Consultation with professionals both “VAWG specialist” and mainstream.

Methodology & Scope of Work

The Tri-borough area Councils - Hammersmith & Fulham, Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea, and Westminster City Council - wish to contract with an organisation or consultant to complete the following scope of work:

Literature Review – a review of current and potential future direction of national and regional strategies to tackle violence against women & girls and support female offenders, and an overview of current best practice
Quantitative Analysis – using data on reported incidents to police and specialist services, as well as estimates of unidentified demand, and to assess the prevalence and nature of violence against women & girls
Qualitative Analysis–follow-up interviews with victims / survivors, and service professionals to understand and assess the impact of domestic abuse and the services available. This should involve “customer journey mapping” for a small sample of victims/survivors.
Review of Current Resources – map current service provision and expenditure, specialist and non-specialist, whether or not they are commissioned by the local authority or not, and review their scope and efficacy
Assessment of Provision – in the context of wider national, regional, and local strategies, and taking into consideration the results of quantitative and qualitative analyses, identify the potential gaps in current provision across the Tri-borough area
Recommendations for Commissioning–bringing all of the above information together, make recommendations as to the appropriate commissioning approaches, policy changes, and service improvements to maximise the use of available resources and improve the co-ordinated community response across the Tri-borougharea. Include consideration as to how these recommendations may impact on the governance arrangements across the Tri-borough area

The methodology will include desk-top research, review of available data and statistics, capturing service user feedback, and interviews with key policy makers, local authority, police and health service professionals. This will be complemented by group discussions and key informant interviews with women’s groups, and specialist service providers. There will be a steering group in place to assist with the activities to be undertaken and to provide information, advice and guidance where needed.

It is proposed that the review takes place in three stages to allow for consultation with commissioners and to develop the recommendations in partnership. These stages are:

Research Sept 2013 – completion of all desk based, quantitative and qualitative assessments of current policies, strategies, need, and resources
Review Oct 2013 – independent assessment of current resource provision against ideal framework based on available resources and levels of identified need
Recommend October – 14th Nov 2013 – publication of final report setting out all of the above and making recommendations to inform policy and commissioning decisions for 2013-17

It is anticipated that the research stage will be iterative, with policy context informing qualitative and quantitative research and vice versa, and that the findings at each stage will help inform and define future stages.

Quote Submission

All correspondence relating to the quote submission, including requests for clarification regarding this specification should be addressed to Lorna Platt, Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea ()

Questions regarding the specification must be submitted by 16th August 2013. Responses to all questions will be provided to all potential vendors by Monday 19th August 2013
Quotes must be submitted by 5pm on Friday 23rd August 2013in electronic format
A funding agreement will be awarded by Monday 09th Sept 2013
Potential vendors must provide in no more than 5,000 words:
Subject appreciation
Proposed outline methodology
Brief outline of similar work carried out; and
Three references for needs assessment (or equivalent)work that the consultant has conducted with contact names and phone numbers
Detail of costs
A two page CV or equivalent describing the qualifications of the staff that will be conducting the needs assessment and their experience on similar projects

Evaluation Criteria

Criteria for appraising the quotation submitted are as follows:

Quality (60%)

Knowledge & Experience (30%)

Experience of leading academically robust research projects and programmes
Experience of working in the field of Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) or with gender based offending agendas and issues
Experience of working with a Community Safety Partnership or similar Health and Social Care setting
Experience of working within performance indicators and frameworks
Experience of communicating complex information verbally and in writing to a range of audiences and environments including senior partnership Boards.

Proposal (70%)

the appropriateness, effectiveness and feasibility of the proposed research methods and/or approach.
whether a realistic timetable, incorporating milestones, is presented which will achieve the project’s aims and objectives within the proposed timescale
the extent to which you have understood the amount of work to be involved, allocated sufficient time and resources to achieving each aspect.

Cost (40%)

Detailed costs should be provided in the quotation. However, the evaluation contract will not be awarded at any higher than £50,000

The assessment panel’s decision will be final and no discussions will be entered into regarding the decision making of the panel. However, all candidates will be provided verbal feedback if requested.

VAWG Specialist Organisations currently commissioned are exempt from this tender process and submitting an expression of interest.

[1]This definition includes so called ‘honour’ based violence, female genital mutilation (FGM) and forced marriage, and is clear that victims are not confined to one gender or ethnic group