Project Servator aims to disrupt a range of criminal activity, including terrorism, while providing a reassuring presence for the public. Our officers are experienced and specially trained to spot the tell-tale signs that someone is planning or preparing to commit an illegal act.

We believe that ‘Together, we’ve got it covered’, so we work with other police forces, local businesses and the public to protect the Harwell site and the surrounding area and everyone who lives, works or visits here and to make it a difficult place for terrorists and other criminals to operate. Project Servator has been successful in gathering intelligence that has assisted Counter Terrorism Units across the UK in investigating and preventing acts of terror.

Project Servator’s patrols are highly visible and can happen at any time and in any location. Officers will talk to the public and local businesses to let them know what they’re doing and remind them to be vigilant, trust their instincts and report any suspicious or unusual behaviour.

Supt Donna Jones, who is leading on the implementation of the project across the Constabulary, said: “We are deploying these additional tactics to further complement the operational activity that exists in and around our Operational Policing Units. Our aim is to build upon relationships with partners as well as businesses and communities.

“These tactics are not new but allow us to have a focus on community engagement and encourage people to be our extra eyes and ears. This is not restricted to the Harwell site but also extends to the surrounding area. We are aware of the vast amount of information members of our community have and they are aware of what is out of the ordinary. All we ask is that they report any suspicions to us and we’ll do the rest.

“The deployments will be unpredictable and our tactics will vary from one deployment to the next. The aim is to work with our local communities to deter any hostile threat.

“Remember, trust your instincts and report any suspicious activity directly to the CNC by calling 03303 138146.”

The CNC is the armed police force in charge of protecting civil nuclear sites and nuclear materials in England, Scotland and Wales. We employ over 1,500 highly trained police officers and police staff across the UK. Counter terrorism is a major part of our policing.

The CNC have their own Twitter, Facebook and Instagram page, so keep up to date with recruitment information, Servator deployments or anything CNC by searching for us and giving us a follow. You can also find out about recruitment opportunities at our CNC Jobs website

More than 95% of farmers received their 2020 Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) money in the first day of the payment window for recipients of the scheme.

Despite the challenges faced by coronavirus this year, the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) is on track to achieve its best-ever payment performance. Approximately £1.671 billion was paid to farmers for BPS on the first day of the payment window, which runs from December to June, a further improvement on 2019 where £1.192 billion was released.

In addition eligible farmers were issued Countryside Stewardship (CS) revenue payments totalling £40m; and Environmental Stewardship (ES) payments totalling £60m are expected within the first few days of the window. An improvement on 2019 where no payments were released.

Those who claimed CS and ES agreements in 2020 will receive one full payment this year as part of a wider plan to deliver a better service to farmers and land managers.

This is the first year that these payments have been funded directly by the UK Government rather than by the EU.

RPA Chief Executive Paul Caldwell said:

We are committed to ensuring timely payments to farmers and land managers, so that rural businesses can plan for the year ahead.

2020 has been a challenging year for many and I have been really pleased at the progress we have made which has resulted in this level of performance despite the difficulties presented by coronavirus. This is testament to the hard work of people within the agency and the measures we have taken to further simplify CS.

Payments are made direct to bank accounts via BACS transfer so farmers should ensure that the RPA has the most up-to-date account details on the Rural Payments service.

On Monday, as part of a wider agricultural transition plan, the government announced that Direct Payments will gradually be reduced over a seven year period, starting from the 2021 Basic Payment Scheme year.

This money will be used to fund new grants and schemes to boost productivity and reward environmental improvements. Support and advice will be available to help those most affected by the phasing out of Direct Payments during the agricultural transition period.

Farming Minister Victoria Prentis said:

I am delighted that the efforts of the Rural Payments Agency during this difficult year has resulted in more farmers getting their payments quickly.

From next year we will start to use funds released from the Basic Payment Scheme to reward farmers and land managers for sustainable farming practices, help them to improve productivity and we will ensure that there is farm resilience support available for the first three years of the agricultural transition period.

Stopping fraudulent activity

Claimants are also urged to remain vigilant against fraud. They should remember:

• Your bank, police or the RPA will never ask you to reveal your online password, PIN or bank account details or ask you to make a payment over the telephone.
• Never disclose personal information to someone you don’t know or open unknown or unexpected computer links or emails.
• If in doubt, call the organisation back, ideally on a different telephone, using a number you are familiar with or you know to be official. You can find this on the organisation’s website, correspondence or statement. Contact Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 without delay for advice and to register your concern

The British Embassy in Baghdad is accepting bids for a 2-3 year project under the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) Iraq Programme. The overall vision of the project is to support Iraq to develop a more inclusive political system and to support broadened participation in political processes, and decision-making.

The project will look to:

• to encourage the development of issue-based political discourse, engaging across a broad spectrum of political actors, CSOs, and communities

And/or

• to support the ability of politically-engaged actors (especially youth) to play an active role in Iraqi political life through the provision of technical, advisory and mentoring support.

Summary of requirements

a) The call for bids is open to international organisations, non-governmental organisations, and private sector entities. The contract will be a grant agreement awarded on a strictly not-for-profit basis. This call for bids is open to all suppliers in the market, including suppliers on the CSSF Framework

b) Bidders should have registration, presence and previous experience working in Iraq, with particular knowledge or experience of the political landscape

c) Bidders should consider sub-contracting with local CSOs or private sector organisations, using appropriate selection criteria

d) Deep, relevant thematic experience on the theme of inclusive politics, particularly in the MENA context

e) The Embassy strongly encourages bidders to develop innovative ideas, and to de-conflict to the extent possible with other existing and planned programmatic activity by third parties in Iraq

f) Bidders should have sufficient financial resilience and a proven track record of transparently and effectively managing donor funded projects of similar scale. Specifically Bidders should have previously received a direct fund of at least $200,000 for a one year spend

g) Grant agreements are strictly not allowed to generate a profit for the delivery partner. For-profit delivery organizations will be asked to provide proof of compliance with this requirement

h) Suppliers should pay particular attention to relevant UK legislation on aid divergence; and proscribed organizations

i) The Embassy retains the right to create a reserve list of bids that meet its technical criteria, which may subsequently be used to select additional bids

Required submissions

Bidders should submit a proposal/concept using this template. This should set out the concept for delivering a project based on the above broadly defined theme(s), to be delivered to a maximum budget of GBP £3m and over a maximum of 3 years.

Bidders should respond to either one of or both of the themes identified above.

All costs should be listed in GBP (not USD).

Official registration documents of the organisation in Iraq and document(s) showing annual turnover and proof of meeting the requirement for $200,000 recent funding (see above).

Bidding process

Concept notes should be sent to BaghdadCSSF.CallForBids@fco.gov.uk by 1 January 2021. In the subject line please indicate the name of the bidder and title of the concept/proposal ‘Political Inclusion in Iraq’. If you have not received a confirmation email within 48 hours, please get in touch with us.

The Embassy will consider which bidders’ concepts/proposals to shortlist. These organisations will then be asked to submit full bids. This decision will be based on:

• relevance to the themes identified
• evidence of deep knowledge of political inclusion issues in Iraq
• quality of the project, including deliverability and realistic results of the proposed intervention with the resources and within the expected timeframe of this project
• strategic fit with Embassy priorities

Following selection of a shortlist of prospective grantees, the Embassy will ask for full bids including costed bids from these organisations only. This will include a detailed Activity Based Budget and completed Project Proposal Form. Further guidance and templates can be found here

Full evaluation criteria for these detailed bids will be shared with shortlisted organisations. They are likely to include aspects risk management, sustainability, value for money, quality, expertise, etc.

The Embassy reserves the right to carry out due diligence of potential grantees as part of the selection process. Due to the volume of concepts/proposals expected, we will not be able to provide feedback on unsuccessful concepts/proposals.