ITT-UKR-CO-2024-0149 DEVELOPMENT OF CONTENT AND ENHANCEMENT OF CHILDREN`S PLATFORM SERVICES PROVISION

Terms of Reference

Consultancy Framework Agreement

Development of content and enhancement of children`s platform

Save the Children

Position: Consultancy Framework Agreement Save The Children – Ukraine Country Office

Duration: 12 months

Expected starting date: TBD

Location: Ukraine

Background on Save the Children

Save the Children is the leading global independent organisation for children. Save the Children believes every child deserves a future. Around the world, we work every day to give children a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. When crisis strikes, and children are most vulnerable, we are always among the first to respond and the last to leave. We ensure children’s unique needs are met and their voices are heard. We deliver lasting results for millions of children, including those hardest to reach.

We do whatever it takes for children – every day and in times of crisis – transforming their lives and the future we share.

Our vision: A world in which every child attains the right to survival, protection, development and participation.

Our mission: To inspire breakthroughs in the way the world treats children, and to achieve immediate and lasting change in their lives.

Our values: Accountability, ambition, collaboration, creativity and integrity.

We are committed to ensuring our resources are used as efficiently as possible, in order to focus them on achieving maximum impact for children.

Background information/context

Before February 24, 2022, humanitarian agencies were reaching 1.5 million of an estimated three million people in the east in need of humanitarian assistance and protection in Ukraine. The escalation of the conflict across the country has seen this rise to more than 12 million people in need of humanitarian assistance, nearly 30% of the total population. 7.5 million children continue to be in grave physical or psychological harm.

Save the Children Ukraine is committed to delivering against the movement’s international influencing strategy both on a humanitarian and a child right focused objectives, including child participation, inside of Ukraine. This agenda includes tracks of work on children’s safety and protection, accountability for grave violations of children’s rights in armed conflict, protecting education from attacks and other areas relevant to Save the Children’s work in Ukraine.

Objective

Save the Children Ukraine is looking to establish a framework agreement with the individual consultant/firm or consultants/firms supporting the development of content and enhancement of children`s platform – the website that is developed to serve in a long run as an educational platform and safe environment for children and youth to learn about child rights, human rights, advocacy, campaigning, and having a space where they can share their own materials and initiatives.

The key streams of work would focus on:

• Development of online children`s courses on different topics within the areas of child rights, human rights, advocacy and campaigning;
• Development of research pieces on topics related to child rights and human rights;
• Technical support for the children`s platform (website), including maintenance, amending and editing the coding, adapting materials to the website, etc.

More details on each stream could be found in the following sections.

Scope of work

One of the main tasks will be the development of comprehensive materials and content for the website, i.e. online training modules focused on child rights education, tailored to be engaging and accessible to children. The project seeks to empower children with knowledge about their rights, ensuring their active participation in society and fostering a culture of respect for human rights.

The consultant will be responsible for collaborating with Save the Children`s staff to identify topics for child rights education modules, drawing from the available resources and suggesting additional topics based on expertise in order to develop engaging and age-appropriate content for online training modules, ensuring cultural sensitivity and alignment with international child rights standards. The produced materials should be in both English and Ukrainian languages catering to a diverse audience. The developed content should be organized into basic and advanced levels, targeting both children and adolescents, to accommodate varying levels of understanding and engagement. The potential approach is to create each course, dividing content into 4 lessons of approximately 15-20 minutes each, including interactive elements such as quizzes to reinforce learning, with final quizzes for each course to assess participants’ comprehension and retention of key concepts.

Developed classes should facilitate integration of multimedia elements and should include interactive audio-visuals, such as videos and graphics, which are appropriate for the target audience and contribute to the effectiveness of the training modules, while enhancing the learning experience and facilitating further reflection on course materials. Each training course should include 2 videos with voice over (both in English and Ukrainian), and at least 1 set of graphics.

During the inception period, the consultant can suggest from their experience the approaches to engage children and adolescents effectively, considering their cognitive development and learning preferences and offer recommendations for evaluation methods to assess the impact and effectiveness of the training modules, including pre- and post-course assessments. The consultant will be collaborating closely with project staff throughout the development process, incorporating feedback and suggestions to refine the content and delivery of the training modules, while maintaining open communication channels to address any concerns or challenges that may arise during the project.

Emphasis will be placed on creating modules that are culturally sensitive, inclusive, and aligned with international standards on child rights. The consultant will also provide guidance on pedagogical approaches and evaluation methods to measure the effectiveness of the training modules. The goal is to equip children with the skills and knowledge necessary to advocate for their rights and contribute positively to their communities.

Both content and format/layout of the training must comply with international standards, including:

• Emotionally safe;
• Inclusive and non-discriminatory;
• Gender-sensitive;
• Respectful and non-intrusive;
• Fun (variations and creative);
• Do no harm;
• Centered around the Best Interest of the Child.

Complementary to the training courses, the second stream of work the consultant may be involved in is the development of research pieces on the topics related to child rights, human rights, child participation and empowerment, and other relevant issues. This scope would include a) research design, development of tools and methodology, data collection, etc., b) data collection, c) research post-production, including data validation, cleaning, drafting assessments, etc., d) graphic designs and illustrations. The following are the tentative topics that may be required for research services:

• Child rights and child rights governance;

• Children in institutional care and unaccompanied children;

• Care and protection of children;

• Access to education;

• Humanitarian needs assessment;

• Humanitarian principles and access;

• Displacement;

• Children participation and agency;

• Quantitative data collection and surveys (including survey design, scripting, and implementation);

• Qualitative data collection and key informant interviews;

• Data analysis and report writing.

Please note that the following list of themes is not exhaustive. The requests for services will include different, additional or more specific areas, also related to the evolving agenda.

Another stream of work will be related to the technical side of the platform development and maintenance, including adapting materials to the website taking into consideration Save the Children`s standards (would be done through Word Press), amending and editing the coding, and provide other technical support for the child website as needed.

Save the Children Ukraine is looking to establish framework agreement with a company(-ies) or individual(s) for specific areas of expertise under which to issue future consultancy contracts. Detailed deliverables and timelines will be clearly defined in the specific terms of reference for each consultancy assignment to be provided. Note that the establishment of a framework agreement with Save the Children Ukraine does not constitute a guarantee of work.

The consultant can express interest in providing either all services mention or some of them, depending on the available capacities. The more detailed breakdown of services can be found in Key Services section.

All Save the Children employees and consultants are expected to work in accordance with the organization’s safeguarding policies, code of conduct, and core values: creativity, accountability, integrity, collaboration, and ambition. These attitudes and beliefs guide our actions and relationships.

Key Services

The consultant will work closely with the project staff to ensure completion of agreed deliverables. The deliverable will be considered submitted when the following will be provided:

Child courses

1. Developed course materials. Each course would include:
   • Finalized and approved course materials with audio-visual elements (at least 2 videos with voice over in both English and Ukrainian and at least 1 set of graphics), and with detailed instructions for self-paced learners;
   • Brief summary on the developed course with rationale for content decisions;
   • List of sources used when developing the course (when relevant);
   • List of additional suggested readings for self-placed learners (when relevant).

Research development

1. Research design, including methodology, tools, and sampling methodology design;
2. Data collection, including actual data collection, training facilitators, data cleaning, data validation and analysis;
3. Research production and post-production, including drafting assessments, desk research, structuring reports, and writing reports;
4. Graphic design, including illustrations, layouts, and other digital drawings;

Support children`s platform

1. Transforming and adapting materials and content to the website;
2. Website maintenance, including amending and editing the coding;
3. Technical support for the website.

Interested candidates may apply and submit their offers for the provision of all services listed above under three clusters in case they possess sufficient capacities to provide them, alternatively they can apply only for services under one cluster (either child courses, research development, or support to the children`s platform), clearly stating them (cluster(s)) in the application.

Qualifications and experience

Interested candidates should have at least the following qualifications:

• At least 7 years of proven professional experience in a thematic area of child rights and human rights or in the related field (journalism, public relations, communications, advocacy with a focus of working with children/on child matters);
• Proven in-depth knowledge of child rights issues, including international frameworks such as the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and International Bill of Human Rights;
• Previous experience in curriculum development, particularly in creating online courses or educational materials;
• Familiarity with online learning approaches, instructional design principles, and interactive course development;
• Ability to conduct research on child rights topics and integrate findings into course content;
• Strong writing and communication skills to convey complex concepts in a clear and engaging manner, suitable for diverse audiences;
• Experience working with stakeholders such as educators, child advocates, and subject matter experts to ensure course relevance and effectiveness;
• Strong familiarity with the Ukrainian context and the ongoing reform processes;
• Awareness of cultural differences and how they may impact child rights issues globally;
• A commitment to upholding child protection standards and ensuring that course content is age-appropriate and sensitive to the needs of children.

Strongly desirable:

• Previous (I)NGO work experience;
• Knowledge and experience of child participation and/or child led advocacy.

Reporting Relationship

The consultant will report directly to the Advocacy, Campaigns, Communications and Media Director, while maintaining communication with the project staff during the consultancy period. The work can be carried out remotely. The Consultant will be in regular communication with Save the Children staff via email, audio or video conferencing, and incorporate feedback from the Save the Children in the deliverables.

Procedure for submission of expression of interest

To express interest in work with Save the Children, the consultant should submit their application, including:

• An updated Curriculum Vitae (CV);
• A cover letter clearly stating the area of expertise and highlighting relevant experience and capacity to undertake services listed in the ToR. It should demonstrate an understanding of the scope of work required to successfully perform the responsibilities (for each cluster that the candidate applies);

Financial quotation that indicates remuneration requirements per each service mentioned in the Key Services section of the current ToR (per course material