BCFNJC Request for Proposals
Issued: December 21, 2022
PROJECT MANAGER/ENGAGEMENT SPECIALIST FIRM:
INDIGENOUS JUSTICE CENTRE EXPANSION
The BC First Nations Justice Council (“BCFNJC”) is seeking proposals from an experienced project manager, planning firm or consultancy to facilitate the successful opening of five Regional Indigenous Justice Centres (RIJCs) in 2023.
Indigenous Justice Centres (IJCs) provide culturally appropriate information, legal advice, support, and representation directly to Indigenous people at the community level. The BC First Nations Justice Strategy (the Strategy) mandates the creation of fifteen IJCs across British Columbia by the end of 2024. At present there are three IJCs in British Columbia, located in the communities of Prince George, Prince Rupert and the Nicola Valley (Merritt).
On November 19, 2022, as part of Premier Eby’s Safer Communities Action Plan, the Province of British Columbia committed to fully investing in the establishment and long-term operation of ten new IJCs across the province. BCFNJC has a two-year time frame to open these new IJCs.
This RFP pertains to opening the first five IJCs by November 2023: Nanaimo, Victoria, Vancouver, Surrey and Kelowna. The following year, ending December 2024, an additional five (5) smaller IJCs will open in yet to be determined parts of the province.
BCFNJC has identified the following distinct areas of the project with which we require support. The successful proponent must be able to complete A and B. Proponents may also bid on C, D and/or E. BCFNJC welcomes collaborative proposals that clearly delineate responsibilities between the partnered proponents.
- PROJECT MANAGEMENT: Overall project management and oversight
- RELATIONSHIPS: Engagement with First Nations, Provincial Territorial Organizations (PTOs), urban Indigenous peoples and organizations, and other service providers
- SPACE: Location scouting, negotiation of leases, design, renovation and subtrade management
- STAFFING: Recruitment of staff for the new IJCs (up to 50 staff)
- COMMUNICATIONS: Press releases, media relations, focus groups, workshops, conference calls, surveys and in-person meetings with Rights holders and justice system stakeholders leading up to the opening of the new IJCs
DEADLINE TO SUBMIT PROPOSALS:
FRIDAY, JANUARY 13, 2023 at 5:00 pm PT
Scope of work/Deliverables:
For each of the items your firm is bidding on, please include a workplan with a high-level approach and budget framework.
- PROJECT MANAGEMENT:
The successful proponent will collaborate with BCFNJC leaders to define, prioritize, develop and execute a project plan to open five Regional Indigenous Justice Centres (RIJCs) by November 20, 2023. This will include:
- Setting deadlines, prioritizing tasks, and assigning team members to deliverables outlined for BCFNJC approval.
- Analyzing financial data, including project budgets, risks, and resource allocation in collaboration with BCFNJC’s CAO and Director of Finance.
- Providing financial reports and options for BCFNJC Executive and Senior Management.
- Overseeing the development of the project and ensuring that team members are carrying out their tasks efficiently, on time and on budget while upholding BCFNJC standards.
- Drafting new and improving existing project management workplans, policies and processes.
- Continuously evaluating projects to ensure they are meeting BCFNJC standards, adhering to budgets, and meeting deadlines.
- Accurately documenting the project's creation, development, and execution as well as documenting the project's scope, budget, and justification.
- RELATIONSHIPS
Engaging with Indigenous communities will be integral to the success of this initiative. The successful proponent will be responsible for province-wide engagement with Indigenous peoples, urban Indigenous organizations, PTOs, and service providers.
The successful proponent will work with BCFNJC to engage with Rights holders, Leadership, Knowledge Keepers and Justice Community stakeholders in the five identified regional IJC locales to ensure the IJCs provide meaningful impact, community-driven solutions and good provincial coverage.
The successful proponent will be responsible for undertaking fulsome engagement with an open-ended needs assessment and participatory design processes to address the priorities of the communities we serve with the goal of expanding local Indigenous justice capacity in the Province of British Columbia.
This will involve the design and delivery of a Consultation and Engagement framework and facilitation services for the RIJCs in urban centres including First Nations partners, justice stakeholders (Crown, defence bar, judiciary, etc.) and community service providers. You will additionally work with the BCFNJC policy and HR teams to develop materials and a process to communicate with Rights holders, Leadership, service providers, and justice system stakeholders.
- SPACE
The successful proponent will seek office lease options for BCFNJC Board approval and oversee any changes needed to the space to ensure they are ready to serve the community.
Tasks will include:
- Negotiating leases
- Preparing and submitting zoning and city permit requests
- Full project costing with timelines
- Overseeing tenant improvements consistent with BCFNJC branding and interior design standards
- Holding contractors to agreed upon budgets and timelines
- Collaborating with BCFNJC’s CAO to ensure adequate insurance and other legislated requirements
- Collaborating with BCFNJC’s Director of IT to ensure proper installation of technology and security in each space
- Each space will be between 7,000-10,000sq ft. with street level walk-up access located in city centres
- IJC office space to be located in Nanaimo, Victoria, Vancouver, Surrey and Kelowna
- STAFFING
The successful proponent will take responsibility for the recruitment of 50 or more legal and administrative staff.
Working with BCFNJC leadership team on the rapid recruitment of 40-60 Regional Indigenous Justice Centre staff, including Indigenous lawyers with experience in criminal law and child protection, paralegals/legal administrators and other RIJC staff for the 5 Regional Justice Centres. Recruitment is required for successfully opening each of the IJCs. As a result, should the proponent bid on this part of the project, each IJC will need to be staffed prior to the opening date.
- COMMUNICATIONS
The successful proponent may devise and run a communications campaign to alert Rights holders and justice system stakeholders of the opening and services provided by the five new IJCs.
Throughout the project various press releases, media relations, focus groups, workshops, conference calls, surveys and in-person meetings will be required. The successful proponent will facilitate these events and communications with stakeholders through guidance and direction from the BCFNJC communications team.
Proposal Requirements:
Only proposals that demonstrate extensive experience working with First Nations and Indigenous communities and clients, particularly regarding large scale engagement projects with demonstrated success, will be considered. Proponents must demonstrate a clear understanding of the diversity of BC First Nations including the political, social, and cultural needs of various communities and regions.
Proposals will include the following:
- Detailed overview of your organization/firm;
- Detailed overview of past experiences and engagement projects similar in scope;
- A description of the physical and human resources required to complete the activities outlined in the Request for Proposals, including identification of the project team members, their roles, qualifications and experience;
- A proposed high level workplan, timeline, and methodology that identifies the time and resources required to complete the proposed work;
- A cost breakdown for the proposed services;
- The name, title and contact information for three (3) references that have used the services of the proponent and for projects similar in scope.
Preference will be given to Indigenous proponents and Indigenous-led firms and organizations.
About the Indigenous Justice Centres:
Strategy 4 of the BC First Nations Justice Strategy mandates BCFNJC to open 15 Indigenous Justice Centres (IJCs) across the province.
IJCs reflect a partnership between the BCFNJC and local First Nations leadership, informed by the priorities set by First Nations leaders in the province. To date legal services have focused on criminal justice and child protection matters. Equally important, IJCs offer diverse services based on community and cultural needs. The IJCs are linked to social and health determinants and take a holistic approach to client and community wellness. This is done by facilitating client connections to supports such as housing, mental health and addictions treatment, culture-based healing and employment services.
Our three existing brick-and-mortar IJCs are in Prince George, Prince Rupert and the Nicola Valley (Merritt). While the pandemic made the further expansion of our physical locations challenging, in 2021 we opened our Virtual Indigenous Justice Centre (VIJC) which provides no-cost legal services and referrals to Indigenous people in BC regardless of their geography.
About the BC First Nations Justice Council:
The BC First Nations Justice Council was created in 2016 by the BC Assembly of First Nations, the First Nations Summit, and the Union of BC Indian Chiefs.
First Nations in BC have provided a clear mandate to the BCFNJC to:
- Challenge approaches that contribute to the growing over-representation of First Nations children and youth in the care of government and First Nations men and women in incarceration; and,
- Productively engage with government to advance effective strategies that can achieve better outcomes for Indigenous people in the justice system.
BCFNJC is guided by the BC First Nations Justice Strategy, which was endorsed by the Province of BC in 2020 and by the Government of Canada in 2021. The Strategy contains 25 individual strategies and 43 lines of action geared towards transformative change along two paths of work: (1) addressing needed improvements in Indigenous peoples’ experience with the justice system to make it less harmful to Indigenous peoples; and (2) supporting First Nations with the critical work of reawakening their legal traditions, customs, and orders.
Submission Details:
- Submissions received by 5:00 pm PT on Friday, January 13, 2023, will be ranked according to an internal framework developed by the BCFNJC (See Appendix A). Staff will then make a recommendation to Council based on scoring per the framework.
- The successful proponent will be notified by email no later than Monday, January 23, 2023, with work to commence no later than February 1, 2023.
- It is the intention of BCFNJC to award one respondent; however, BCFNJC may award in the best interest of BCFNJC and at its sole discretion to one or more than one respondent. BCFNJC may cancel or amend the RPF process without liability at any time.
- The respondent will bear all costs associated with or incurred in the preparation and presentation of its proposal, including, if applicable, costs incurred for interviews or presentations.
- If a bidder is selected, contract negotiations will commence. If a satisfactory contract cannot be entered into with the successful bidder, BCFNJC reserves the right to disqualify that bid and re-issue the RFP.
- Information provided by the proponent will be treated as confidential and privileged and will be viewed exclusively by the bid evaluation team.
- Please email a password protected pdf of your proposal to Sher Miller, Administrator, Executives and Council, at sher.miller@bcfnjc.com.
- Please direct any questions you may have to Sher Miller by phone: 778-940-1520 or email at sher.miller@bcfnjc.com.
Thank you for your interest.
Appendix A – Evaluation Framework –
Proposals will be scored based on:
- Demonstrated experience overseeing complex projects in tight timelines
- Knowledge and experience working with BC First Nations
- Knowledge and experience working in the justice system
- Experience working with provincial and federal funding
- Availability and capacity to start work no later than February 2023
Scoring CategoryEvaluation WeightRequired in bid package
Section A: Project Management25%Mandatory
Section B: Relationships 25%Mandatory
Section C: Space/Real Estate5%Optional
Section D: Staffing5%Optional
Section E: Communications5%Optional
Project Team Qualifications and Experience with References for projects of similar scope.25%Mandatory
Indigenous Owned and Operated Organization10%Mandatory
TOTAL100%
Categories will be weighted based on the sections that the proponent submits. Any response to this RFP requires a response on sections A and B, where C, D, and E are optional.
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