NSW Department of Communities and Justice / Innovative Early Intervention for 9 to 15 Year Old Children and Young People - 2012InnovativeEarlyInterventionTender

In 2011 the Government announced that $10 million per annum would be transferred from Community Services operations to the non-government sector in order to trial innovative services for 9 - 15 year old children and young people.Funding will be provided via open Tender to non-government services over four years ranging between $1-$3 million per annum per service in the five selected sites.

The total duration of the contract will be conditional upon satisfactory performance reviews and any other strategic or operational matters considered relevant by Community Services to ensure the sustainability of the services over time.

The aim of the trial initiative is to develop innovative approaches that will provide an effective response to 9 - 15 year old children and young people reported to Community Services who are assessed as at risk of significant harm (ROSH) or vulnerable to being at ROSH.

The services are intended to result in children and young people at risk of significant harm being able to stay safely at home. This result will be evaluated and measured by a reduction in re-reporting to Community Services and reduced entry of participating children and young people into the OOHC care system. ?

The actual activities to be undertaken will be determined at a later stage based on the successful tender proposal in negotiation between Community Services and the successful applicant. They will be described according to their components, service description and service outlet location by LGA.

In order to encourage innovation, service activities are not being prescribed. However, in accordance with literature and research about what works best, service models should at a minimum reflect:

• interventions that address the complex issues experienced by children and young people and which work with their family and community;

• assertive means to achieve and sustain the active engagement and participation of children, young people and their families;

• safety, risk management and service collaboration across the government and non-government sectors.

In all locations the service model should be able to demonstrate how it builds on available evidence and is designed to achieve the intended outcomes of the trial initiative.

The central expected outcomes of service provision are for children to be safer in the family home so they can grow up in a stable and supportive environment. This will be measureable in a reduction in the number of:

• re-reports regarding participating children and young people and their siblings (under 16); and

• participating children and young people and their siblings (under 16) entering OOHC.

To see improvements in these indicators of child and young person safety, it is also expected the trial services will achieve improvements with participating families in the domains of:

• parenting and family functioning - using a common assessment tool;

• child’s and young person’s educational engagement – using information available from the Department of Education and Communities (DEC) and schools;

• child’s and young person’s housing stability;

• child’s and young person’s offending behaviour;

• family, child and young person’s community connectedness;

• child’s and young person’s health, including mental health, and well-being; and

• parent/carer capacity for, and modelling of, self efficacy and involvement (as appropriate) in education, employment and/or community in so far as this contributes to improved outcomes for the child/young person.

It is expected that the delivery of service will commence from 1 January 2013.

Service providers wishing to apply for this Tender are requested to complete and lodge online the following:

• Section 3 – FACS Standard Application Form

• Section 4 – Returnable Schedules, which consists of 3 schedules:

• Schedule 1: Proposed Service Delivery

• Schedule 2: Assessment Criteria

• Schedule 3: Proposed Annual Service Budget

For more detailed information about this Tender process, applicants are to download Section 1 - Statement of Requirements and Section 2 – Conditions of Tendering for Funded Services.

Refer to Additional Details / Instructions

Community Services will run briefing sessions about this tender process on 12 October 2012 and 17 October 2012 (dates, times and venue to be confirmed). Information about the briefing sessions will be made available closer to the dates. Service providers are advised that a video link will be made available for those services unable to physically attend. It is highly recommended that services attend a briefing session or participate via video link.

For information regarding the Community Services regions for service delivery please refer to the documents titled Section 1-Statement of Requirements, and Section 4 - Returnable Schedules, attached to this tender.

Applications will only be accepted in electronic format via the NSW E-Tendering website. Applications will not be accepted by email or fax. Exceptions to this shall only apply where Community Services has provided written permission to an applicant to lodge an application or part thereof by hardcopy, some other physical form. Such permission shall only be granted in circumstances, deemed exceptional by Community Services (The Convenor), at its absolute discretion.

Tenders are sought from service providers with skills, experience and expertise to design and implement innovative models based on existing program or practice evidence. Service models developed are expected to provide an effective response to 9 – 15 year old children and young people reported to Community Services who are assessed as at ROSH or vulnerable to being at ROSH.

From 1 January, 2013