Application advice session for Local Authorities: KA2 Strategic Partnerships – Region to Region

1. Application advice session for Local Authorities:KA2 Strategic Partnerships – Region to Region

2. Why a new approach? The world is changing fast  new challenges E.g. High youth unemployment etc…

3. What is Key Action 2? Key Action 2 will focus on sharing, developing and transferring innovative practices in education, training and youth provision between participating countries

4. How? Through Strategic Partnerships UK organisations can apply for funding to run collaborative projects which address: • Policy objectives and priorities • challenges • needs of oneor more specific field of education(i.e. higher education, vocational education and training (VET), school education, adult education, youth)

5. Summary of basic features • Can last 2 or 3 years • Can focus on one specific field of education i.e. school education • Can promote cross-sectoral cooperation i.e. involve more than one field of education • Grant is a mix of set unit costs and real costs

6. Who can apply? • Any Local or Regional authority from a Programme Country can apply Who can participate? • Organisations fromProgramme and/or Partner Countries cantake part as projectpartners (not as applicants)

7. Programme countries Following the announcement from the European Commission regarding Switzerland's participation in Erasmus+, Switzerland will now participate as a Partner Country under the Erasmus+ 2014 Call, rather than a Programme Country, pending an agreement between the EU and Switzerland.

8. Number and profile of partner organisations • a minimum of two local or regional authorities with a role in school education from two programme countries • must also include at least 1 school and 1 local organisation active in another field of education, training and youth or active in the labour market in each participating country • up to a maximum of ten local or regional authorities from programme countries can be funded per SP (and more on a non funded basis (including partner countries)

9. Selection and grant agreements • one application per project, assessed by coordinating National Agency • grant agreement with applicant organisation and their National Agency only • applicant organisation holds the funds for the whole partnership

10. What happens when you apply? • a formal check is made to verify against the eligibility and exclusion criteria • a quality assessment evaluates how well the participating organisations meet the selection criteria and the project meets the award criteria • Notification of result of application is within 4 months of the submission deadline (30 April 2014)

11. Acronyms galore: ECAS, URF, PIC • Before applying, local/regional authority will need a Participant Identification Code (PIC) … • … to get a PIC, you must use the Unique Registration Facility (URF) … • …and to access the URF, you must register with the European Commission Authentication Service (ECAS) • Start at http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/work/onlineservices/pador/register_en.htm

12. Award Criteria-Each application is scored out of 100 points • Relevance of the project (30) • Quality of the project design and implementation (20) • Quality of the project team and the cooperation arrangements (20) • Impact and dissemination (30) A project must score at least 60 to be considered, AND score at least 50% in each category

13. Relevance of the project Relevance of the proposed project to: • one of more of the policy priorities for education & training • and/or the school education priorities • page 27 in the programme guide

14. Education and training priorities • developing basic and transversal skills, such as entrepreneurship, digital skills and multilingualism • enhancing Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) uptake in teaching and learning • promoting stronger coherence between different EU and national transparency and recognition tools • supporting the adjustment of funding and investment in education and training to new needs, and the development of improved funding approaches for skills development

15. School priorities • Improving the attainment of young people, particularly those at risk of early school leaving (ESL) • Improving the attainment of young people with low basic skills in Maths, Science and Literacy • Developing high quality and accessible Early Childhood Education and Care services • Revising and strengthening the professional profile of the teaching professions

16. Quality assessment principles • there should be a fair and standard marking of applications, no matter their size or scope • so the assessor will consider the size of the project and the experience of the local authority when assigning marks, and will adjust expectations accordingly • in practice this will mean that you are not enormously disadvantaged by applying for a small project – the definition of ‘very good’ will be different • coherence of the grant request in relation to the activities and outputs proposed will be checked

17. The application eform • Completed on-line only (no paper) • You’ll need the most up-to-date version of Adobe Reader • To submit and complete in full, you will need to be connected to the internet • It must be saved to your desktop before starting • There have been some reports of corruption when using a USB stick with a .pdf application, so that should be avoided

18. It should look like this

19. Basic form info • Grey is automatic – you can’t enter info • Red outline is mandatory • Blue with black outline is optional • Combination of drop-down menus and free text boxes • Hover over boxes to find character maximums • Section-by-section guidance online shortly

20. Context and participating organisations • Basic information • Applicant organisation cf. coordinator in Comenius • Details fill in automatically when ‘PIC’ input • Associated Partners – schools and other organisations working in the project are ‘Associated Partners’ and Do Not need a ‘PIC’ • However need to give details of local authority and associated partners (size, scope of work, expertise, experience etc.) in the application form

21. Description of the project, objectives • Rationale, issues and needs i.e. why this project? • Innovative or complementary: how does it fit with other activity? • Partners: how chosen? skills, knowledge, experience? New partners? EU added value • Communication and meetings, partners and stakeholders • Relevant Priorities - drop down • Relevant Topics - drop down • Results: outputs, products, changes; • NB not outputs covered below under “activities”.

22. Preparation and project management • Preparation: analyses, planning, building engagement, possibly before funding starts (cf. “activities” • Budget and timelines: management and monitoring budget between partners, monitoring timelines, rectifying • Quality of activities: monitoring quality of delivery; who, how, when? (cf. “activities”) • Risks: internal and external, how monitored and mitigated • Assessing achievement: qualitative and quantitative indicators and activities (outputs, results, objectives) cf. “activities” and “impact” below

23. Implementation • Organisation of activities: who, what, where, how coordinated, timings • Target groups: who? cf. “needs”, above • Participants with fewer opportunities: number; proportion of participants • support for them • why is participation difficult?

24. Project activities (and outputs) • Menu caters for a range of projects in terms of in type and scale • Divided into types: Intellectual outputs Multiplier events Learning/Teaching/Training Activities

25. Intellectual outputs • What are they? Publications e.g. academic papers; policy recommendations at different levels; curricula , course materials; training materials; assessment methods, materials; handbooks, advice, guidance; case studies ; good practice; websites; innovative uses of IT and different media; software

26. Multiplier events • Directly linked to intellectual outputs • Emphasis on visibility and dissemination in Erasmus+ • Beyond participating individuals and organisations

27. Learning, teaching and training activities • Must clearly contribute to overall objectives of project • Short term staff training events lasting from 5 days to 2 months • Short term pupil exchange lasting from 5 days to 2 months • Long term staff teaching or training assignments lasting from 2 to 12 months • Long term school pupil study periods for pupils aged 14 or over lasting from 2 to 12 months

28. Follow up - impact • Impact (effects, results, changes) on participating individuals and organisations, systems and practices and other stakeholders • Impact beyond the project, local, regional, national, European • Measurement – who, what, how

29. Follow up - dissemination • Important in Erasmus+ - added value of EU funding, wider reach and impact • Communicating successes and results widely: for use by others including other sectors; to influence policy; into the future • Measureable, realistic objectives • Timetable • Resource planning • Involvement of target groups if possible

30. Follow up - dissemination • Target audiences, different levels • Responsibilities, skills of team • Accessibility, media • Monitoring

31. Sustainability • Of project activities and results • Resources – financial, other (e.g. institutional support)

32. Budget • Menu of different cost items: different funding levels and structures • Most payments conditional on justification in application • Unit costs/flat rates • Ceilings • Two cost items are common to any project: Project management and implementation Transnational project meetings

33. Project management and implementation • 500 EUR per month to the coordinator, and 250 EUR per month to each other local / regional authority • project management e.g. contribution to tasks such as planning, managing finances, coordination, communication, promotion and dissemination • Virtual cooperation and local activities • Information/promo/dissemination (e.g. production and dissemination of brochures, web info…)

34. Transnational project meetings • Travel and subsistence costs for project meetings between partners, hosted by one of the participating organisations • Distance bands as crow flies, - European Commission distance calculator 100km – 1,999km = 575 EUR per participant 2,000km and above = 760 EUR per participant • Maximum 23,000 EUR per year in total for all partners)

35. Other cost items (summary) • Intellectual outputs: staff costs as applicable per day/role/country • Multiplier events: 100/200 EUR per local and foreign participant • Transnational learning/teaching/training activities: travel by distance, and subsistence per participant by day or month

36. Special needs • Additional actual costs incurred to support participants with special needs.   • Please enter actual costs as far as you know them, it may not be possible to provide extra funding for participants with special needs which has not been included in your original budget request

37. Exceptional costs • 75% actuals , subcontracted goods and services which partners cannot provide • Office equipment or other equipment normally used by partners will not be funded

38. Project Summary • Synopsis: to be used for publicity, uploaded to EC dissemination platform • Context • Objectives • Participants • Activities • Methodology • Results, impact, longer term benefits • Summary of participating organisations and budget

39. Application process • Once you’ve completed the form, you should: • Validate • Print declaration • Have it signed • Attach the declaration • Attach the time table of activities (Gant chart) • Attach mandate • Submit the application online by 11.00 on 30 April 2014

40. Finding out more www.erasmusplus.org.uk For application guidance, forms, deadlines, the programme guide, Links and guidance for ECAS and PIC, and everything to do with Erasmus+, including more links erasmusplus.enquiries@britishcouncil.org 0161 957 7755