These are located in the  ‘How to apply’ section above.

The Acts of Engagement can be downloaded under the respective Tender section (1 and 2).

You can sign electronically or manually the Act of Engagement.

Both methods are accepted.

VAT is a tax matter. Tax matters are subject to national regulations and are the responsibility of the provider applying to any tender. Please consult your tax advisor or national legislation about the tax and VAT regulations that apply to you and the legal form with which you apply for this tender on this specific question.

There are two different tenders and two different tender files – the reference numbers are 2024/AO/61 and 2024/AO/60 respectively. Applicants can apply for both, or just one, and for one or more lots in each.

Yes, you can. But you must make two completely separate applications and follow the instructions for each tender respectively. Make sure to send TWO SEPARATE emails, one with each application package, indicating the respective Tender ID number in the respective subject line.

Applications for these tenders are to be submitted ONLY by email to [email protected]. Please refer to the two tender files for the respective application procedures.  

When one bidder submits more than one financial offer for the same deliverable, it is considered multiple tendering. Regardless of the bidder’s legal form (natural person, consortium, or legal entity), only one financial offer is permitted per bidder.

No, sending in your application to [email protected] does mean you are accepted to the roster. Your application is registered and will be studied by the Tenders Board. It will be assessed as per the procedure and criteria outlined. If your application makes it through the assessment, and you are selected, then you will be part of the roster. Simply sending in an application does not mean that you will be automatically selected for the roster.

No, the financial offers will only have to be specified in the call off stage, once the Roster for Tender 2 has been established.

The former ‘Trainers’ Pool’ was an informal roster. It no longer complies to Council of Europe procurement regulations and must be replaced in line with administrative rules. Many aspects of the functioning of the new rosters will be the same in all but name (for example, the ‘call-offs’ are equivalent to the calls for expressions of interest that were previously advertised to the Trainers’ Pool).

Nevertheless, there are a few key differences:

• Candidates for the rosters have to meet an explicit minimum level of qualification to be invited to become a member. These are the eligibility criteria outlined in each Tender document.
• The rosters are limited in time to a predefined duration or term. Even if they can be renewed, the renewal is also limited in time. After the end of the term, the roster will be closed, a new tender will be reissued, and a new roster will be created.
• Many of the tasks outsourced to Youth Department consultants / members of the Trainers’ Pool are what can be understood as ‘repetitive needs. These can no longer be advertised through open calls for anyone at all to apply. These can now only be advertised to the rosters through ‘call-offs’ for the ‘Lots’, which are pre-defined categories of tasks.
• For the establishment of the rosters, the senior and junior profiles are no longer important – they are no longer an eligibility criterion. The need for what, henceforth, will be referred to as ‘lead’ and ‘supporting’ roles will be defined at the stage of the ‘call-offs’. In response to the ‘call-off’, you will be able you will be able to make your case for why you meet the criteria for a lead or supporting role for the specific assignment as part of your expression of interest.

Each tender has its own roster.

Yes, you can be selected for both, if you apply for both.

The terms of the rosters differ. For ‘education, training and facilitation services’ the term is two years (i.e. 1 January 2025 – 31 December 2026).

For ‘all other services’, the term is a maximum of 4 years (i.e. 1 January 2025 – 31 December 2028). This Roster may be renewed after the first two years have passed, for another 2 years on a yearly basis.

Yes. In both cases, the rosters can be renewed.

Renewal takes place tacitly unless the roster is terminated at the end of the initial term, in which case you will be informed and instructed about how to reapply.

No, there is no guarantee of work if you are selected for a roster. This said, and as a general rule, roster membership is a form of preferred consultant status, which gives you privileged access to calls for expressions of interest, known as the ‘call-offs’ (see below).

If you are not a member of a roster, it is unlikely that you will be invited to express interest for assignments, as only in exceptional cases will these be made public beyond the roster/s during its / their validity.

Furthermore, membership of a roster does not constitute employment. Please refer to the Act of Engagement for further information and details in this regard.

The total maximum number of consultants per roster is 

• 200 for education, training, and facilitation services and 
• 110 for all other services, respectively. 

The respective tender file includes the breakdown of these totals by Lot. These are the maximum numbers. If fewer eligible and qualified candidates apply, the rosters will accordingly include fewer providers.

You can add these documents if you think they are relevant for the application, notably as links to your CV.

No, it is not necessary to conduct a self-assessment for you mother tongue.

If you do not have a formal certificate for your language competence, you can use the self-assessment method of the Common European Reference Framework for Languages. Please consult this website for more information.

We suggest that you self-assess using this overview of competence descriptors. You can include a brief table with the level you judge yourself to be on for each language you wish to include. This can be done as part of the language section of your CV.
 

 For example:

English

Yes, an unofficial (but truthful) translation of your certificates if they are in a language other than English is fine. Please provide a copy of the original with the unofficial translation. We suggest that for languages you also include the CEFR self-assessment in your CV.

Yes, it is. If you didn’t receive a formal certificate, you can provide other documentation that demonstrates you participated in a training for trainers or that you conducted training for trainers (contract, enrolment, confirmation from organisers, letter). The training for trainers does not have to be conducted by the Council of Europe. It can be by any other provider of relevance. However, it is important that you not only provide confirmation of participation, but also information about the provider and the course curriculum.

No. The deadline cannot be changed. Applications received after the deadline will not be considered and applications that are incomplete and do not include all requested documents will be excluded.

The specific profile of required references is outlined in each tender document and for each Lot.

As a rule, reference letters should be provided by persons who know the tenderer well in a relevant professional or voluntary capacity and can attest to their competence for the Lot or Lots for which they apply truthfully and comprehensively, and without reservation.

While many tenderers may also have worked for the Council of Europe Youth Department on a regular basis, for reasons of (perception of) conflict of interest and Council of Europe Youth Department staff members, including those located at field offices, cannot provide reference letters.

This said, tenderers can provide reference letters from other Council of Europe departments with which they have cooperated or from any other institution or organisation with a relevant profile, especially a relevant youth / youth work profile.

Furthermore, where the supervisor in a specific case was a Youth Department member, tenderers may submit references from peer trainers or colleagues who worked with them on the same project, but who are not members of Council of Europe Youth Department staff.

Certitication of ToT

I participated in a CoE-run ToT years ago and cannot find my certificate. Is it possible to get a copy of the certificate of completion of the ToT course? Is it OK if I provide only a copy of the program?

I participated in the Training of Trainers in Human Rights Education (TOTHRE) 2019-2021 organized by the Council of Europe at the European Youth Centre Budapest. Upon successful completion of the program, I received a certificate then, yet I am unable to locate it at present. Could the official List of Participants serve as a proof of my participation instead of the certificate? The List of Participants is published on this webpage, and my name is there:  https://www.coe.int/en/web/human-rights-education-youth/tothre-2021.

No, certificates and diplomas are not counted within the 5 pages limits for the CV.

Activities and projects for which we will be contracting will very considerably in duration. This information will be provided as part of the call-offs.

Most if not all activities and projects will have a face-to-face component, with the exception of those that are specifically organised only online.

Yes, presence for face-to-face activities is required. In general, activities take place at either of the locations of the European Youth Centre, i.e. Strasbourg or Budapest. However, some activities and projects also involve face-to-face activities in Member States, i.e. locations other than Strasbourg and Budapest.

Every assignment will be advertised to the corresponding roster through what is known as a ‘call-off’. This is similar to the calls for expression of interest that were the previous practice at the Youth Department. The call-offs will be disseminated to all roster members who have been selected for the Lot to which the assignment corresponds. The call-off documentation will include all relevant information about how the selection for the respective assignment will be conducted.

A consortium is any group, either of individuals or of entities. In this case, they should provide a full application package for all members of the consortium – i.e. individual experts and/or entities.

If you apply as an organisation with several members of staff that could eventually work on different projects, then every applicant included must present a complete application package that demonstrates they are qualified for the Lots for which they are applying. You should also include a comprehensive organisational or company profile which includes a description of its activities.

The language skills of each member of staff participating in the application should be included in their personal CV.

No, this does not constitute a conflict of interest since the funding is not intended for personal gain.

Since they are not on staff any longer, they can provide a recommendation letter.

No, you cannot become part of the roster of you are currently working as an Educational Advisor at the European Youth Centre.

You can apply if you have an application pending for the Educational Advisor recruitment. However, if your application is accepted, you will be excluded from the roster.

Please send your complete application dossier/s to: [email protected] . Applications are accepted in electronic format only and shall be sent ONLY to [email protected] . Make sure to indicate the Tender ID number in the subject line of your email application. If you are applying for both Tenders, send TWO SEPARATE emails, one with each application package, indicating the respective Tender ID number in the respective subject line.

• Candidates will be disqualified for any incomplete or missing documents.

The deadline for receipt of applications for BOTH tenders is 15 September 2024 at 23.59 CET. After this deadline, no further applications will be accepted.

The deadline for both Tenders is 15 September at 23.59 CET.

The deadline is 15 September. There will be no readvertisement.

No, but the presentation can be found on the website.

Questions regarding these specific tendering procedures may be submitted at the latest by close of business (COB) CET on 8 September 2024, in English, and shall be exclusively sent to the following address: [email protected].

The answers to all questions received will be published on a regular basis on this website as part of the FAQ until 9 September 2024.

You will be informed of the result of the tender procedure at the end once the process has been completed. Whether successful or not, all candidates will receive their result by email. We expect to complete the procedure for both tenders during December 2024.

No, we don’t have any requirement regarding CV format. There is a standard European format, such as the Europass CV, but it is not mandatory to use it.

We suggest you PDF all documents individually and append them to the email one by one to make it visible that you have included all of the required documents.

The Council of Europe recognises the sensitivity and importance of a new name for individuals in gender transition. However, for all legal purposes the Council of Europe is obliged to use the name as indicated on official documents to ensure said person retains their rights concerning insurance, travel arrangements, payments, and other matters. The Council of Europe commits to amending the Act of Engagement and corresponding documents (Purchase Orders or any others) upon request once the individual obtains official documents with their new name. While we understand the difficulty of using a name that no longer aligns with one’s identity, adherence to such legal requirements is also a measure to ensure the legal and social protection of the person concerned under the contract with the Council of Europe.  

Yes, they can. The tender documentation and details about the application process are available on the Youth Department website HERE.

Yes. There are no restrictions on the geographic location applicants.

No.

No.

Our rosters need to represent the similar diversity that the participants of our programme of activities, and they also need to include the diversity of lived experiences of the participants in the programmes. The assessment process will be looking to include the maximum diversity possible, and will be checking the CVs for markers of such diversity and experiences.