HIV Prevention Innovation Fund 2018-19 Application guidance and terms of reference
Contents Introduction 3 Eligibility 3 Important dates 4 Application process 5 Application form guidance 6 Support, queries & feedback 9 Terms and conditions 9 Terms of reference 10 Background 10 What are we looking for? 10 Fund 11 Applications 11 2
Introduction This document contains instructions and guidelines for the HIV Prevention Innovation Fund 2018-19. Applicants must submit an application using the form provided in order to be considered. A shortlisting panel will score each application; this stage will be followed by a final selection day where shortlisted applicants will be asked to present more details on their projects together with a question and answer session. Eligibility The HIV Innovation Fund is open to charitable or voluntary sector organisations only. However, lead organisations may sub-contract or collaborate with other types of organisations. Grants issued from Public Health England (PHE) through the HIV Innovation Fund in 2018 will provide funding to deliver a service outside of the Procurement framework and primarily under section 64 of the Health Services and Public Health Act 1968. 3
Important dates Deadline Activity Until 31 August 2018 Register your interest in the fund by emailing hiv.prevention@phe.gov.uk 23 July 4 September 2018 Application phase 20 July 4 September 2018 Webinar and email questions 4 September 2018 Deadline for submitting your application to the fund is midnight on 4 th September 2018. This is a non-negotiable deadline. Applications must be emailed to hiv.prevention@phe.gov.uk 6 18 September 2018 Panel review and score applications 20 September 2018 Shortlisting panel meet 21 September 2018 Local authorities of shortlisted projects approached to provide references 24 September 2018 Shortlisted projects notified and invited to interview on selection day WC 24 September 2018 Non-shortlisted projects receive notification 10 and 11 October 2018 Final selection all shortlisted projects will be invited to London to deliver a short PowerPoint presentation and to answer any further questions. A time slot will be allocated and so, at this stage, it is advised to keep both dates free. PHE will meet the cost of up to two people, who book their travel in advance through us. WC 15 October 2018 WC 15 October 2018 Final selected projects informed via email Unsuccessful short-listed project receive notification and written feedback 22 October 3 November 2018 Feedback for unsuccessful projects will be available. Feedback will be offered either via written communication or via a 15 minute phone call November December 2018 November December 2018 Official launch and start up meeting with all successful projects Projects go live 4
Application process Each proposed project must submit their application using the template provided and submit before midnight on the 4 th September 2018. The application template can be found here. All proposals will be reviewed by members of the selection panel of the HIV Prevention Innovation Fund and a shortlist will be decided in September 2018. Proposals that do not fit the HIV Prevention Innovation Fund Terms of Reference (see page 10) will not be considered. Shortlisted applicants will have the opportunity to deliver a short presentation followed by a question and answer session on 10 th or 11 th of October in London. This will form the final stage of the selection process. Application scoring Members of the shortlisting panel will score each section in the application (sections 2-9). The total number of marks available per application will be 80. The scores allocated will be used to guide the shortlist selection. Available marks per section: 0 marks Applicant information 15 marks Project proposal 10 marks Benefits 10 marks Deliverables 5 marks Spend 10 marks Monitoring and Evaluation 10 marks Sustainability and legacy 10 marks Knowledge sharing and dissemination 10 marks Risk management 5
Application form guidance Section 1. Applicant information Please complete all the fields in the form. This is important information and will be used to process your application. In order to ensure that your project aligns with local or national priorities it is required that you get endorsement from a Local Authority team responsible for HIV prevention (public health/commissioning). If your proposed project would include more than one Local Authority you only need to get endorsement from the commissioner from one of those Local Authorities. If you are submitting a national project please contact the Innovation Fund team via email at hiv.prevention@phe.gov.uk before or at the time you submit your application. In addition make it clear on the application form if you are submitting a national project. Please note if your proposal is shortlisted we will contact the named supporting local authority for a reference. More than one application per local authority area will be accepted. To ensure equal access to the fund it is unlikely we will fund more than one project in each local authority area, unless this covers a larger geographical footprint and/or is otherwise justified. Section 2. Project proposal (15 points) This section should provide the reviewer with a clear idea of the project as a whole. Give a succinct description of the project itself emphasising its merit and achievability within the proposed time period. Highlight how the project is innovative e.g. will the project develop new technology? Does the project use an established approach in a new way or in a new geographical area? Will the project provide resources not currently available? Ensure that you highlight the HIV Prevention Innovation Fund priority/priorities your project addresses and be clear on who your target audience is. Section 3. Benefits (10 points) This section should focus on why we should fund your proposal. Define the issue you are aiming to address and explain the potential benefits to HIV Prevention. Outline and describe the target population and location using evidence, data and your experience to describe the need and to support your approach. Tell us the outcome(s) you are aiming to achieve and how the project relates to local or national priorities. If existing work and partnerships are in place detail how this project will work alongside them. 6
Section 4. Deliverables (10 points) In this section the panel will be looking for more detail about the activities that you are planning to undertake. In the box provided, list your major deliverables for each quarter of the project. Ensure your deliverables are achievable, measureable and relevant to your objectives. Please use bullet points and keep the deliverables clear and concise. Please note they will be cross-referenced to your spend table during scoring. Section 5. Spend (5 points) In this section we are interested in the amount of funding you are requesting from PHE only. If you have secured additional funding from another source please provide details in the space provided at the bottom of this section. For each quarter please enter the spend you have allocated for pay and non-pay costs of the project and then the totals for the whole project in the last column. In the third row record the spend you have allocated to cover potential contingency costs in each quarter and in total. In row four write the amount you have set aside for monitoring and evaluation for each quarter and in total. In the seventh row please detail the planned spend on subcontracted activities for each quarter and the whole project in the final column. The panel will be interested to know if new staff will need to be recruited to conduct this project. If you will have to recruit new staff then you should indicate the total amount of spend that you have allocated to new staff in row eight. In addition include the grade or type of post this is for. If your project proposal has attracted a co-funding offer from a local organisation/ other organisation please enter this information under the spend table in the space provided. Finally before you submit your application please check that the amounts in the totals boxes are correct. Section 6. Monitoring and Evaluation (10 points) All projects will be required to monitor and evaluate their own project either internally or via an external partner. Projects will also be required to co-operate with the PHE appointed external evaluator. 7
Identify the key performance indicators that will be used to monitor success and describe precisely how these will be measured. This will require you to look at the deliverables you listed (section 3) and the project proposal (section 2). Identify primary and secondary outcomes against which your project will be evaluated. Section 7. Sustainability and Legacy (10 points) A key aim of the Innovation Fund is to create a legacy of evidence based resources and interventions that will benefit HIV prevention as a whole and in this section you should detail how your project will contribute to that aim. Describe how your project will have an impact beyond the period of PHE funding e.g. are there impacts that will continue beyond 12 months or will the there be a resource which will be created that can be shared and used more widely? Importantly, please detail future funding opportunities you have explored which will extend the project beyond the period of PHE funding should your project be shown to be effective in achieving its aims. Section 8. Knowledge Sharing and Dissemination (10 points) PHE will make every effort to ensure that learning and resources from the HIV Innovation Fund are disseminated widely. However, the panel would also like to understand which options you will take to ensure that the wider sector is able to learn from the project and access resources. If you plan to present the project at conferences or via publications please include this here. Section 9. Risks (10 points) Identify potential risks to the project. Decide who or what may be affected by this risk and the impact this will have. In the second column record any control measures that could be put in place to reduce the risk. 8
Support, queries & feedback Before and during the application process the Innovation Fund team will answer your queries via email at hiv.prevention@phe.gov.uk. At the beginning of the application process PHE will hold an online seminar during which the application process will be explained in more detail and there will be an opportunity to ask questions to the team. This webinar will remain posted online to view again for the duration of the application period. Feedback will be offered through 15 minute telephone conversations with the HIV Innovation fund team, details of how to book this feedback will be distributed when the final selections have been made. All shortlisted projects will receive written feedback with points raised by the panel. Terms and conditions The terms and conditions for agreements signed between PHE and projects successful in obtaining funding through the HIV Innovation fund can be found here. All projects will be subject to these terms and conditions. Please take the opportunity to look at them and if possible share them with your legal counsel before you submit your application. 9
Terms of reference Background HIV remains a major public health issue in England. Innovative, community-led interventions have had a significant role to play in limiting the HIV epidemic in England. To further support the potential for the voluntary sector to develop effective ways to address HIV prevention in communities at increased risk of HIV, PHE is inviting applications to the HIV Prevention Innovation Fund. What are we looking for? Following the success of the projects funded in the first three years of the Innovation Fund, PHE are announcing a further fund for 2018-19. As in previous years the Fund will support projects that offer new and innovative ways of delivering HIV prevention. This year, PHE will welcome all innovative proposals and particularly those that: Promote third-sector led support for combination prevention and harm reduction throughout the continuum of care Promote the prompt diagnosis, especially through frequent testing, of both HIV and other sexually transmitted infections Address stigma associated with HIV Address the wider determinants of high risk sexual behaviour such as mental health and drug and alcohol misuse Support the integration of HIV prevention into health promotion and service delivery in other health areas (e.g. integration into sexual and reproductive health services, primary care pregnancy planning and ante-natal care) Support increased knowledge, awareness and understanding of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV as a prevention stratagem, especially in currently underserved populations (e.g. higher-risk heterosexuals, women, black and other ethnic minorities, men who have sex with men and transsexual communities) Proposals will be accepted from voluntary sector organisations to deliver projects of up to 12 months duration, that explore new ways to address high risk behaviours in those communities most affected by HIV. All projects must have measurable outcomes and the potential to be replicated and scaled by others. An evaluation of projects from 2016-17 can be found here; a list of the successful projects from 2017-18 can be found here. 10
Fund PHE will allocate up to 600,000 for 2018-19 on projects that address prevention of HIV transmission and acquisition. We anticipate submissions will include a mix of larger (up to a maximum value of 100,000) and smaller projects (from 25,000 each). Applications Applications will need to demonstrate the involvement of the appropriate Local Authority through either their endorsement or partnership working. We expect successfully funded projects will help to strengthen partnership working, either with local sexual health and HIV services, other voluntary sector collaborators or both. Projects should ensure they re designed to complement the current national HIV Prevention England (HPE) Programme and any locally delivered programmes. Selection A panel of representatives from Public Health England together with representation from Local Authorities, Association of Directors of Public Health, Local Government Association and NHS England will prioritise funding for the highest quality bids that are submitted. The application process will begin in August 2018 and close in September 2018. Shortlisted applications will be informed in September 2018 and final announcements will be made at the end of 2018. Register your interest Please send an email with your name, email address and organisation name to: hiv.prevention@phe.gov.uk. You will be informed about the webinar and any other supporting activities via email. 11