RFP - Scoping Western Front heritage site interpretation

The Ministry for Culture & Heritage, on behalf of the First World War Centenary Programme Office, is seeking proposals for services relating to scoping delivery of improved heritage site interpretation and visitor experiences (the “heritage trail”) associated with the Western Front.

About the Western Front

While most New Zealanders associate the First World War (1914–1918) with the devastating loss of life at Gallipoli, few are aware that the fighting on the Western Front was far more deadly.

During the two and a half years that New Zealanders fought in France and Belgium, 12,483 men lost their lives. Of all New Zealand’s military campaigns, this was the bloodiest. It took more lives of more New Zealanders than did the whole of the Second World War.

Why are we doing this?

From a New Zealand perspective our story is, thus far, unevenly told on the Western Front*. Some individual locations provide a lot of detail on the New Zealand involvement, but there is no coherent experience that could take a visitor (whether a New Zealander or someone from overseas) through the full scope or even parts of New Zealand’s engagement from 1916 to 1919 across the UK, France and Belgium.

In many cases New Zealand is invisible, particularly at places that receive the largest visitor numbers — numbers we expect to increase even further during the First World War centenary commemorative period (2014–2018). New Zealanders visiting the Western Front may struggle to find any guidance to sites of significance to New Zealand, in a space crowded with information about other nations.

As part of the official First World War centenary programme (WW100), the New Zealand Government seeks to enhance information about New Zealand’s contributions to the First World War, and to improve the overall visitor and learning experience. These enhancements are to be made both at and about sites (for example battlefields, cemeteries or local museums that may already feature New Zealand-related exhibitions) on the Western Front (and significant related sites in the United Kingdom).

We want to avoid replicating what already exists (including existing material such as printed guides and historical websites), or duplicating the effort of local providers helping people discover New Zealand stories, but this material may well be woven into the overall product we are seeking.

We want to ensure that those interested in, or unaware of, the New Zealand story have opportunities for an enhanced visitor and learning experience, whether virtually or in the respective locations that are significant in New Zealand’s history.

* New Zealand embassies overseas report, for example, that in France and Belgium, New Zealand monuments and memorials to the missing stand proud but with little or no explanation as to why they are there. In Flanders, the New Zealand Division’s story is reasonably captured though without linking threads. In France, apart from some notable exceptions (Arras and to some extent Le Quesnoy), it is almost non-existent. In support areas in the United Kingdom and France there is no coherency nor guide as to where to visit. The sacrifices, tragedies and successes of our troops on the Western Front need a voice – almost 12,500 New Zealanders died and are buried on the Western Front and we need to take the opportunity presented by the centenary (and beyond) to commemorate them.

What are we looking for?

The First World War Centenary Programme Office within the Ministry for Culture & Heritage is seeking a company or independent contractor to help scope what form this “heritage trail” experience might take — from websites and mobile applications to signage, printed booklets to partnerships with overseas museums and organisations.

You will be experienced at ‘narrowing the field’ of possibilities in collaboration with a range of stakeholders and drawing from your knowledge of delivering superior learning, visitor and tourism experiences across a range of formats. Ultimately, you will provide a business case with recommendations for components, which will help the Programme Office plan for the delivery phase of this significant legacy project for the First World War centenary commemorations.

You may be based offshore, with the ability to connect easily with stakeholders in New Zealand and overseas; or in New Zealand. You won’t be afraid to listen to everyone’s viewpoint and then make a considered recommendation on the best way forward based on your prior experience and expertise. Working in a foreign-language environment will be well within your capabilities.

Submit a proposal

We invite you to submit a proposal for phase one of this project to improve heritage site interpretation and visitor experiences associated with the Western Front, or to share this invitation with those in your network who may have relevant skills and experience for scoping projects of this nature.

This opportunity is available through GETS, the New Zealand Government Electronic Tenders Service, Reference 39044.

We prefer you register with GETS to access the Request for Proposal. However, if you are not registered and wish to submit a proposal, you may request a copy by emailing us at [email protected].

Respond by date: Friday, 21st of June 2013 at 5:00 pm