Published date: 17 February 2017

Closed opportunity - This means that the contract is currently closed. The buying department may be considering suppliers that have already applied, or no suitable offers were made.


Closing: 17 March 2017

Contract summary

Industry

  • Personal development training services - 80570000

Location of contract

SW1A 2AH

Value of contract

£0

Procurement reference

tender_137539/567366

Published date

17 February 2017

Closing date

17 March 2017

Contract start date

15 May 2017

Contract end date

15 May 2019

Contract type

Service contract

Procedure type

Open procedure

Any interested supplier may submit a tender in response to an opportunity notice.

Contract is suitable for SMEs?

Yes

Contract is suitable for VCSEs?

No

Description

The FCO has several hundred staff working on communication in London and across its global network. Staff working on communication range from qualified professionals to diplomats with no prior communication experience to experienced locally employed staff to new starters. Staff regularly move into and out of communication roles so there is a constant requirement for high quality training to bring staff to the required level to deliver effective communication and to build and refresh their skills.
Our staff currently have access to a suite of bespoke courses run by external trainers on our behalf. This includes the training sought in this procurement which we currently call "International Communication Skills" and is a five-day course specifically targeted at staff working in communication roles. For those in non-communication roles we also run "Strategic Communication for Policy Officers" (to help policy staff embed communication into their daily work), "Engagement & Communication for Leadership" (for Heads of Mission) and "Digital Diplomacy" (for all staff to incorporate and exploit digital tools into their work).
"International Communication Skills" currently runs once a month in the UK and up to four times overseas where there's a strong enough regional or local need. Over 150 people per year attend the course and it is routinely oversubscribed with a substantial waiting list. This includes staff seeking a refresher as well as those new to FCO communication roles.
The current course is very popular and has evolved over the course of the current contract to address changing needs such as new digital tools and high profile FCO campaigns. Feedback and evaluation suggests that the current format is successful and resulting in improved skills and awareness that filter through to better communication across the organisation.

More information

Attachments

Additional text

Please ensure you submit your bid no later than 12:00hrs (GMT) Friday 17th March 2017

About the buyer

Contact name

Katherine Joslin

Address

King Charles Street
London
SW1A 2PA
England

Email

Katherine.Joslin@fco.gov.uk