UK Public Sector Contracts & Tenders

Buckinghamshire Council intends to procure an In‑County Integrated Therapies Service to deliver a coordinated therapeutic offer for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). The service will integrate Speech and Language Therapy (SaLT), Occupational Therapy (OT), and Physiotherapy (PT), providing a seamless and clinically robust support pathway across health, education, and social care. The proposed service will provide: - Assessment, intervention and review for children and young people aged 0–19 (and up to 25 where applicable) with SEND‑related therapeutic needs. - Speech and Language Therapy, supporting communication needs, social interaction, and dysphagia management (where clinically required). - Occupational Therapy, addressing functional skills, sensory processing needs, and access to education and daily life activities. - Physiotherapy, supporting physical development, motor skills, and non‑acute health conditions requiring specialist PT input. - Joint working with schools, early years settings, and community teams, supporting Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) in accordance with the Children and Families Act 2014. - Integrated delivery that reduces duplication, improves access, and ensures equity of provision across the county. This service is expected to streamline existing therapy pathways by bringing contracts together into a single integrated model, improving consistency, workforce planning, and outcomes for families. Estimated Contract Value: The procurement is expected to exceed the £2 million UK1 threshold, requiring publication of an individual Pipeline Notice in accordance with the Procurement Act 2023. Planned Procurement Approach: A competitive procurement will be undertaken in partnership with NHS system partners where appropriate. Key features of the planned approach: - Use of a competitive procedure under the Light Touch Regime, common for therapies and SEND services. - Joint commissioning with health partners to ensure a single, unified service model. - Ensuring uninterrupted service delivery through coordinated mobilisation and workforce transfer. Market Considerations: - Forecasting procurement activity through a Pipeline Notice supports market readiness, especially among SMEs and specialist VCSE therapy providers, who are key participants in SEND therapy frameworks nationally. The integrated model will enable: - Improved recruitment and retention through joint working and shared clinical supervision. - Stronger multidisciplinary collaboration across SaLT, OT and PT. - Better alignment with SEND reforms, EHCP statutory timelines, and local inclusion strategies. - Increased capacity for early intervention, reducing escalation into higher‑cost services. Estimated Procurement Timeline: Tender Notice Publication (UK4): Expected within the next reporting period, in line with the 18‑month visibility requirements for UK1 notices. New Contract Start Date: Aligned with an academic or financial year cycle. Contract Term: Anticipated multi‑year contract, to promote service stability. Additional Context: Integrated therapies commissioning is increasingly common across local authorities to improve efficiency and outcomes. This upcoming procurement forms part of the authority’s wider SEND transformation programme, ensuring children and young people can access consistent, high‑quality therapy support within county boundaries.

Buckinghamshire Council intends to procure an Integrated Short Breaks Service for children and young people with disabilities and their families. Short breaks form part of the statutory duties placed on local authorities under Section 25 of the Children and Young Persons Act 2008, which requires the provision of short breaks to support families with disabled children. The Integrated Short Breaks Service will aim to: - Provide a range of community‑based, centre‑based and home‑based short break opportunities that promote personal development, independence, and enjoyment for children and young people with disabilities. - Deliver family‑supporting breaks that strengthen resilience, enable rest for carers, and reduce family stress. - Enhance social inclusion, relationships, and participation within the community for disabled children. - Support children and young people to access meaningful activities that foster personal growth and allow families to maintain positive relationships. The integrated model is expected to bring together targeted short‑break services with broader early help and social care pathways, ensuring seamless access, timely assessment, and equitable provision across the local area. Estimated Contract Value: This procurement is expected to exceed the £2 million threshold, which requires the publication of an individual UK1 Pipeline Notice. Planned Procurement Approach: The authority anticipates using a competitive flexible procedure under the Light Touch Regime. The authority will ensure transparency, early engagement, and market‑shaping opportunities ahead of formal tender publication. Market Considerations Publishing this pipeline notice will: - Provide early opportunity for SMEs and VCSE organisations to prepare, reflecting typical market engagement for short breaks services. - Enable providers to plan for workforce development, safeguarding, personalised support planning, and inclusive activity design. - Support innovation in service models, including blended community activities, holistic family support, and digital coordination tools. Estimated Procurement Timeline: - Estimated Tender Notice Publication: Within the upcoming reporting period, aligned with UK1 requirements for forward‑looking visibility. Service Commencement: Expected to coincide with the next financial cycle; specific details will be set out in the Tender Notice. Contract Duration: A multi‑year contract is anticipated to ensure service continuity and long‑term stability. Additional Context: Integrated short breaks commissioning is a key part of local authorities’ wider SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) strategies, which will demonstrate increasing emphasis on: - Aligning short breaks with early help pathways. - Co‑production with families and young people. - Ensuring inclusive, accessible services that reflect diverse needs. This procurement will form part of the authority’s drive to improve outcomes for disabled children, enhance family resilience, and ensure statutory compliance through a coordinated, child‑centred approach.

Buckinghamshire Council intends to procure a comprehensive range of Residential Care, Nursing Care, and Extra Care Services for adults with eligible health and social care needs. The procurement will focus on securing long‑term, high‑quality care and support delivered across multiple residential establishments, aligned with local commissioning priorities and the legal duties placed on authorities under adult social care legislation. The scope of the provision is expected to include: - Residential care services providing accommodation, personal care, daily living support, and wellbeing‑focused activities. - Nursing care services delivering 24‑hour health‑related support by registered nurses, including complex needs management and clinical oversight. - Extra Care services offering on‑site care and support within dedicated housing schemes that promote independence while ensuring access to responsive care. - Integrated support that emphasises dignity, safety, personalisation, and co‑produced care planning. - A service model that ensures continuity of care, increased placement stability, and improved outcomes for older adults and adults with complex needs. This procurement will support the authority’s long‑term strategic aim of ensuring a sustainable, high‑quality care market that offers choice, specialist support, and resilience across health and social care. Estimated Contract Value: The authority anticipates the contract value will exceed the £2 million threshold required for an individual UK1 Pipeline Notice. Planned Procurement Approach: The procurement is expected to follow a Light Touch Regime approach. The procurement will be structured to encourage: - Market stability and long‑term partnership working. - Participation from SMEs and diverse care providers. - High‑quality, person‑centred delivery models. Market Considerations: Publication of this pipeline notice aims to: - Provide early opportunity for providers, including SMEs and VCSE organisations, to prepare for tendering and capacity planning. - Stimulate innovations in extra care and residential support, such as technology‑enabled care, outcome‑focused delivery, and enhanced independence‑promoting models. - Strengthen market readiness in areas including workforce development, digital care management, and complex‑needs service capability. Estimated Procurement Timeline: Tender Notice (UK4): Expected within the forthcoming reporting cycle, consistent with UK1 requirements to provide 18‑month forward visibility. Service Commencement: To be confirmed as part of the Tender Notice. Contract Length: Anticipated to be multi‑year. Additional Context: There will be an increased emphasis on: - Integration of residential and extra care services with health partners. - Strengthening placements for older adults and individuals with complex or long‑term conditions. - Maintaining a resilient care market through block contracting, strategic partnerships, and outcome‑focused commissioning. This future procurement forms part of the authority’s broader adult social care transformation ambitions, ensuring high‑quality provision that promotes independence, safety, and improved well-being outcomes.

Buckinghamshire Council intends to procure a comprehensive Domestic Abuse Support Service encompassing both safe accommodation support and community‑based outreach for victims of domestic abuse and their children. This service will ensure the authority meets statutory duties under the Domestic Abuse Act 2021, which introduced legal obligations for Tier 1 local authorities to provide support in safe accommodation and formally recognised children as victims in their own right. The proposed service will include: - Delivery of support within safe accommodation, including refuge, dispersed units, and other forms of secure housing. - Community outreach services for victims who do not require or choose not to enter accommodation‑based services. - Support for children and young people impacted by domestic abuse, aligning with the statutory duty to recognise them as victims. - Trauma‑informed, person‑centred support including safety planning, advocacy, emotional support, and assistance with accessing health, education, legal and financial services. - Alignment with emerging obligations from the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024, which will introduce new collaborative commissioning duties across local partners for victim support services. The authority aims to deliver a local domestic abuse response that: - Meets statutory duties under national legislation. - Improves safety, well-being, and recovery outcomes for victims. - Strengthens multi‑agency partnership working. - Ensures early intervention and robust safeguarding pathways. Estimated Contract Value: The contract is expected to exceed the £2 million threshold, which requires publication of individual UK1 Pipeline Notices for each procurement. Planned Procurement Approach: The authority anticipates conducting a competitive procurement in line with the Procurement Act 2023. Market Considerations: Publishing this pipeline notice will: - Provide early visibility to the market, including SMEs and VCSE organisations, which are recognised as key providers in this sector. - Invite innovation in service design, such as culturally responsive support, survivor‑led practice, perpetrator‑focused disruption pathways, and improved digital access. - Enable providers to prepare and collaborate across the local partnership landscape in line with the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024. Estimated Procurement Timeline: - Publication of Tender Notice (UK4): Expected within the forthcoming reporting period, consistent with UK1 requirements for forward‑looking visibility over 18 months. - Service Start Date: To be confirmed and detailed in the Tender Notice. - Contract Length: Anticipated to be multi‑year to ensure stability of service delivery. Additional Context: This procurement forms part of the authority’s broader safeguarding and community safety strategy, ensuring that survivors receive high‑quality, timely, and holistic support.

Buckinghamshire Council intends to procure a comprehensive Primary Care Contraceptive Services provision designed to improve access to high‑quality contraceptive care across the local area. The service will support public health responsibilities and primary care duties by enabling residents to access a full range of contraceptive options. The proposed service will include: - Provision of long‑acting reversible contraception (LARC) fittings, removals, and follow‑up care. - Access to contraceptive counselling, information, and sexual health advice. - Ongoing clinical assessment, diagnostics, and prescribing to support contraceptive choices. - Integration with wider sexual and reproductive health pathways, including safeguarding, STI testing, and onward referral services where appropriate. - Support for data reporting, activity monitoring, and service quality assurance aligned with local authority and NHS requirements. The service aims to: - Improve contraceptive access for women and people of reproductive age. - Reduce health inequalities by expanding service availability in primary care settings. - Improve outcomes through earlier intervention, choice, and continuity of care. - Strengthen collaborative working across primary care, public health, community services, and voluntary sector partners. Estimated Contract Value: The authority anticipates the contract value will exceed the £2m threshold that triggers a UK1 Pipeline Notice requirement under the Procurement Act 2023. Planned Procurement Approach: A competitive procurement procedure is expected to be undertaken, in line with the Provider Selection Regime (PSR) and related regulations. Market Considerations: Publication of this pipeline notice is intended to: - Provide early visibility to potential providers, including SMEs and VCSE organisations, supporting market readiness and capacity planning. - Stimulate early engagement regarding innovative delivery models, workforce capacity, digital tools, and collaborative pathways. - Support a competitive and diverse supply market for primary care‑led contraceptive services. Estimated Procurement Timeline: - Tender Notice publication: Within the next reporting period, in accordance with UK1 requirements (18‑month visibility window). - Service Commencement: To be confirmed as part of the subsequent tender documentation. - Contract Length: Expected to be a multi‑year arrangement to support service stability and provider investment. Additional Context: This procurement forms part of the authority’s wider public health and primary care commissioning intentions. Similar to other published primary care opportunities—such as the NHS England Primary Care Support Services pipeline notice—services will focus on high‑quality, accessible delivery and robust administrative/clinical governance.