We invite proposals from expert consultants in fundraising and financial sustainability to work with three UNESCO-designated sites in the UK to develop fundraising strategies for each site and best practice guidelines for the wider UNESCO network. This role is part of a high-profile new project: ‘Local to Global’ – made possible with The National Lottery Heritage Fund, thanks to National Lottery players.

About Local to Global

The UK is home to 43 UNESCO land-based Designated Sites geographically covering 12% of the country and which contain the UK’s most prized cultural and natural heritage. This includes: World Heritage Sites, Global Geoparks and Biosphere Reserves. Over the next two years, the UK National Commission for UNESCO (UKNC) will develop a resilient network for UNESCO Designated Sites in the UK.

UNESCO Designated Sites are a bridge from local to global action. Across the UK’s coasts, countryside and cities is an extraordinary network of places and people working on important interconnected challenges related to environmental, economic, social and cultural diversity. Each Biosphere Reserve, Global Geopark and World Heritage Site is a central hub where openness and collaboration drive the innovation and creativity required to achieve a better quality of life on our planet for futures to come. There is genuine motivation amongst the network to cross-pollinate knowledge, resources and ideas as widely as possible. To match the ambition of these sites, and for them to play their part in achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, UKNC is stepping up its game. Our reports on the National Value of UNESCO to the United Kingdom and UNESCO Sites for Sustainable Development have set a roadmap for how we want to help UK UNESCO Designated Sites fulfil their potential.

For the first time, Local to Global will convene UNESCO site coordinators and external consultants to provide training and resources that help them work with their partners to promote skills, confidence and capacity-building in the following key areas:

• Audience development, stakeholder mapping, and inclusion
• Fundraising and financial sustainability
• Digital transformation and web development

About UNESCO Designated Sites

UNESCO Designated Sites comprise broad partnerships, ranging from statutory agencies who oversee the conservation and management of natural and cultural heritage, private owners who own heritage sites or land, and broader communities who live, interact, and visit these sites. UNESCO-designated sites are also made up of combinations of local and national natural/cultural assets such as listed buildings, scheduled monuments, and national parks or areas of outstanding natural beauty, which together make them internationally significant. Overseen by a Site Coordinator or team, their role is to bring these stakeholders together to manage, protect, educate, research, plan, and sustainably manage these places. All sites achieve this by creating and maintaining a management plan. The UKNC would like to better understand the different types of partners/stakeholders in each UNESCO designated site and their needs and interests to help inform audience development, fundraising, and communications potential for Coordinators at the site level and the UK National Commission at the national level.

Responsibilities of the Fundraising Consultant

The Fundraising Consultant will report to the Project Implementation Manager and Project Administrator. They will be required to work with three pilot sites to develop three tailored fundraising plans. It is envisaged that the majority of this work will be undertaken remotely, with in-person trips to sites as required for workshops and research. Travel costs will need to be factored into the overall proposal budget.
The UKNC is therefore looking to appoint a consultant to produce the following outputs:

• Recommend a series of baseline metrics that can be used by a separately contracted Evaluation Consultant to establish fundraising challenges, priorities and needs.
• Three fundraising strategies – one for each pilot site. The pilot UNESCO sites have been pre-selected by the project board using a strategic approach and are as follows:

• Biosffer Dyfi Biosphere Reserve, in mid-Wales
• Black Country Global Geopark, in the West Midlands in England
• Antonine Wall World Heritage Site, along the central belt of Scotland

The consultant will work with each of the site coordinators and the Project Implementation Manager to produce three tailored fundraising strategies for the pilot sites to test out using a small project grant issued by the UKNC. Each fundraising strategy should include short-term, medium-term and long-term targets and meet the different needs and ambitions of each site. To do this, it is anticipated that the fundraising consultant will build upon an audience development plan and stakeholder map developed through a separate consultancy contract.

• A final report with fundraising recommendations and best practice guidelines to be shared with other sites in the UK UNESCO network. This will be based on the consultant’s own observations of working with the pilot sites. The report will be digitally shareable and the consultant will present key findings as part of an online training event at the end of the project.

Timeline and contract management

We expect the commissioned Fundraising consultant to begin towards the end of June 2023 and complete final reporting by September 2024. Key dates will be confirmed with the UKNC once in post.

The anticipated budget is £15,000 (including all expenses and VAT). The payment schedule will be structured in the following instalments:

25% June 2023 on recruitment and signing of contract
25% November 2023 on review of progress
25% April 2024 on review of skeleton report
25% September 2024 upon successful completion of the final report

The Fundraising consultant will be managed by the UKNC’s Project Implementation Manager.

Award criteria

Proposals should be a maximum of 1,500 words and include:

• Your approach and methodology for undertaking this work
• An outline of internal responsibilities and liaisons
• Details of staff allocated to the project and your collective experience in carrying out similar projects
• Allocation of days across members of your team and your daily charging rates
• Your timescale for carrying out this work
• Overall budget plan
• An overview of your relevant experience and qualifications related to this brief

Proposals will be assessed by the UKNC against the following points:

• To what extent does the proposal demonstrate understanding of the issues and social values related to the project brief
• To what extent is the methodology set out in the proposal appropriate to the requirements set out in the brief
• What level of relevant experience and qualifications does the applicant demonstrate in order to successfully complete the work
• Overall value for money and financial viability of the quote
• Additionally, it’s desirable to demonstrate some knowledge of one or more of the following strategic topic areas: third sector and social enterprise, culture and heritage sectors as well as the built and natural environment.

Submitting an application

All applications should be submitted to the UKNC Project Implementation Manager, Liam Smyth: [email protected]

No later than: Friday 9 June 2023

Interviews: Thursday 22 June 2023

The successful applicant will be expected to commence work on week commencing Monday 26 June 2023