This Procurement will establish a single Supplier Contract for the Provision of resources and expertise to augment the continued development of Social Work England's core digital services; the public facing website and Case Management System.
As part of an infrastructure upgrade and cost saving exercise, Social Work England are planning to replace our existing Palo Alto and Cisco hardware infrastructure devices with Meraki devices. These include firewalls, edge and core switches in high availability, and multiple access switches. The Meraki replacements will tie in with our existing Meraki Wi-Fi appliances and access points and be managed via our existing Meraki dashboard.
Social Work England are committed to learning about social work, and to gathering data and intelligence about the profession and people's experiences. We want to make a unique contribution to the evolution of regulation and provide valuable assurance of and leadership to the social work profession. We intend for this research to inform our work and provide a detailed picture of social work in England which will enrich our approach in the next period and inform decisions about whether further user in-sights work and/or communications are appropriate.
The Authority is seeking the provision of Omnichannel Contact Centre Solution' Services for a period of 4 years with the option to extend for a further 12-months extension period.
Social Work England are seeking to establish a contract with a legal services firm ("the Potential Provider") who can work in partnership with Social Work England's legal team to deliver an external legal support function which will complement the existing support delivered by the Legal Team.
Social Work England require a Case Management Solution to manage applicant registration requests, Fitness to Practise cases/complaints and a web-based platform for social workers in England to manage their personal records.
**This system was procured through the GOV.UK Digital Marketplace - G-CLOUD 13**
Social Work England are seeking to establish a contract with a legal services provider ("the Provider"), who can work in partnership with Social Work England to deliver independent legal advice to, and legal training for, our Case Examiners.
Social Work England's aim is to procure translation and transcription services for our fitness to practise hearing activity and wider general activity as and when required.
Social Work England is digital by design - we rely on our digital services for the majority of our interaction with registrants, delivery of our functions and raising of concerns by members of the public.
After regulating for almost 5 full years, it is timely to take stock of our progress and establish a clear direction of travel in relation to digital, data and technology. We have high ambitions and, as a public body, a responsibility to ensure that we are efficient and achieve the best possible value for money across all areas of our business, optimising the resources available to benefit the public and the profession.
This procurement may be applied via the CSS Management Consultancy Framework Three (MCF3) RM6187
The first phase of Social Work England's Change the Script
Campaign was launched during Social Work Week 2024. It called on the TV and film industry to more accurately represent social workers on screen, boosting public perceptions and recognition of the profession in response to data that showed only 44% of the public think social work is well-respected in society.
Campaign evaluation found a 67% increase in people agreeing that social workers
deserve more recognition after viewing the campaign film.
Given their central role in society, the key campaign objective for phase 2 would be to continue to increase public understanding, recognition and trust of social work as a regulated profession and show appreciation for a role that supports millions of people. It is
a vital career. This would also support recruitment and retention within the profession.
Award notification for provision of a Leadership Development Programme.
This procurement exercise supports the formal learning strand of a broader leadership development programme, a central output of our organisational culture review. The programme is anchored in a newly developed behaviours framework and aims to equip leaders to embody expected leadership behaviours, enabling them to drive cultural transformation.
The Supplier will provide a fully managed travel and accommodation booking platform that includes:
• Booking and management of rail travel, flights, hotel accommodation, taxis, and car hire
• A cloud-based portal accessible via desktop and mobile devices
• Configurable approval workflows to enforce the Customer's travel policies
• Comprehensive reporting and invoicing functionality
• User training and ongoing support services
This was a mini-competition through the Crown Commercial Services Framework RM6342 Travel, Transport, Accommodation and Venue Solutions
Social Work England intends to procure a suitably qualified and experienced training provider to design, deliver and continuously improve a comprehensive training programme for Adjudicators, Legal Advisers (Partners) and Case Examiners involved in Fitness to Practise (FtP) decision-making. The programme will support newly appointed decision-makers through mandatory induction training and provide ongoing annual refresher training for existing cohorts, ensuring consistency, legal soundness and quality across all FtP decisions.
The appointed provider will be required to develop, implement and deliver training covering the statutory and regulatory framework applicable to Social Work England's adjudication and case examination functions. This includes but is not limited to: the Fitness to Practise Rules 2019 (as amended), the Social Workers Regulations 2018 (as amended), relevant regulatory case law, approaches to impairment, preliminary issues, procedural fairness, managing unrepresented registrants, avoiding bias, the realistic prospect test, and drafting clear and reasoned decisions. The training must incorporate interactive and practice-based learning, with anonymised examples where appropriate.
Training for FtP Partners will be delivered remotely. Training for Case Examiners will be delivered through a blend of remote, hybrid or in-person sessions, including an initial two-day programme. The contract includes the development of webinars, e-learning modules, virtual workshops, peer-led learning forums and reflective practice groups to broaden access through Social Work England's digital learning platform. All training must incorporate principles of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, including relevant legal duties, unconscious bias mitigation and cultural competence.
The provider will collaborate closely with Social Work England's Fitness to Practise, Legal and ED&I teams in planning, reviewing and refining the training offer. They will also be responsible for supplying training materials, pre-reading, recordings and an annual programme of delivery. Ongoing evaluation and quarterly performance reporting will be required, alongside participation in continuous improvement activity informed by appeals, Professional Standards Authority learning and internal quality assurance.
The initial contract term will be three years, with the option to extend for a further two years.
Social Work England are looking for a cleaning and a general maintenance provider who can deliver consistent, high-quality service, maintain a safe and healthy work environment, and provide environmentally friendly cleaning and maintenance solutions.
Daily cleaning services will be required with after-hours cleaning preferred to minimise disruption to office staff. Deep cleaning services will be scheduled with prior notification given.
Three qualified cleaning personals are required to work Monday to Friday with variable hours to be agreed upon contract implementation.
The scope of work will include but not limited to:
- Daily cleaning,
- Waste disposal,
- Carpet cleaning,
- Window washing,
- Periodic deep cleaning,
- Sanitation of high-traffic area.
Cleaning personnel will be required to wear the necessary PPE and follow the health and safety guidelines when undertaking their duties.
As part of its statutory duty to investigate concerns
about the fitness to practise of social workers,
Social Work England may, where appropriate,
require registrants to undergo a medical
assessment, particularly in cases where concerns relate to a registrant's mental or physical health. As
Social Work England does not possess the internal
capacity to deliver these specialist services, it is
seeking to appoint a suitably qualified and
experienced Service Provider to work in partnership
to deliver a high-quality and robust Medical
Assessment Service. The appointed provider will be
responsible for conducting comprehensive medical
assessments and producing clear, quantifiable,
evidence-based reports that determine whether a
registrant's mental and/or physical health may be
impaired to the extent that it could affect their
fitness to practise. Experts may also be required,
when necessary, to provide witness testimony in
fitness to practise hearings.
Provision of BSL services for Fitness to Practise reports.
A provision of £50,000 has been made for this requirement due to bespoke/specialist services needed.