Evaluation of the Green Recovery Challenge Fund Round Two

The Green Recovery Challenge Fund was first announced by DEFRA in June 2020, as a new fund of up to £40 million for nature recovery and conservation. In November 2020 an additional £40 million was announced to further support environmental renewal while creating and retaining a range of jobs in England. The Green Recovery Challenge Fund brings forward public investment to help charities and environmental organisations start work on projects across England that will restore nature, tackle climate change and connect people to the natural world. 90 projects were awarded funding in June and July 2021, adding to the 69 projects awarded funding in round one. The 90 round two projects are scheduled to complete by the end of March 2023. Full guidance on round two of the Green Recovery Challenge Fund can be found on the National Lottery Heritage Fund's website.

Green Recovery Challenge Fund round 2 | The National Lottery Heritage Fund An interim report evaluating the progress of round one is in draft but has not yet been published, and will be shared with the successful supplier.

Evaluation of round two of the GRCF This brief is for the programme evaluation of the second round of the Green Recovery Challenge Fund. It also includes outline proposals for drawing together some common findings across both rounds of the Green Recovery Challenge Fund- as an £80 million intervention delivered from late 2020 to March 2023.

The evaluation of round two will also consider how the lessons that funders and key stakeholders have learned from round one have been applied, the impact of the updates that were made to the grant-making processes for the second round of funding and the impact of projects funded in round two. The outline method and research requirements section of this brief covers the five proposed strands of research, with the evaluation focussing more heavily on impact and overall value for money, and taking a lighter touch approach to examining the process for delivering the second round of GRCF funding - focussing on the delivery context for round two projects and changes to Heritage Fund processes that were put in place after round one.

Aims and Objectives of the Evaluation The objective of this evaluation is to provide insight into round two of the GRCF, including its outcomes and value for money, and triangulating those with findings from round one of the funding, to give an initial picture for the GRCF overall.

The focus of the evaluation will be in providing insight into the delivery and outcomes of round two projects, learning the lessons from the second cohort of projects.

FULL DETAILS ARE INCLUDED IN THE ATTACHED ITT VALUE £140,000. INCLUDING VAT.

Your tender proposals must be sent electronically via e-mail before the tender return deadline of Noon, Thursday 27 2022 to the following contact: Diane LaRosa [email protected]