UK Public Sector Contracts & Tenders

*This notice is for market engagement and request for information only* Worcestershire County Council's Public Health Team wishes to understand the extent of gambling harm across Worcestershire and how harm could be reduced or prevented. We would like to hear from organisations who have experience of conducting research with health, local authority and VCS services, to support the development of a gambling needs assessment. In November 2024, the UK Government confirmed a new statutory levy on gambling operators, introduced in April 2025. The levy provides increased, independent and sustainable funding for the research, prevention and treatment of gambling-related harms across Great Britain. We would like feedback from providers who have experience in conducting research with VCS and statutory organisations and services. We are keen to hear from VCSEs, SMEs and those based in Worcestershire.

The national Best Start Family Hubs and Healthy Babies programme sets a refreshed direction for family and health support from April 2026 to March 2029. It builds on the learning from Sure Start, Family Hubs and Start for Life, with a clear expectation that local areas bring together health, education, early years, parenting and community support so that families can access help earlier, more easily and in places they already know and trust. The programme places strong emphasis on early identification, prevention and reducing inequalities, particularly during pregnancy and the early years when the foundations for lifelong health, learning and development are laid. Best Start Family Hubs should provide a welcoming and inclusive front door for families, supported by a wider network of linked local services and outreach locations, so that families can receive the right support at the right time and are not left to navigate services on their own. The updated national guidance describes Best Start Family Hubs as a key part of the Government’s wider Best Start in Life strategy, supporting the ambition for more children to achieve a good level of development by age five. The model remains universal and open to families from conception to age 19, or up to 25 for young people with special educational needs and disabilities, while prioritising support for families with babies and young children. Locally, Worcestershire already has an established Family Hubs offer across the county. This procurement will support the expansion and strengthening of the current model so that it aligns with the additional national expectations for Best Start Family Hubs and Healthy Babies, including improved access, outreach, partnership working and support for families during pregnancy and the early years. Full details of the requirement can be found in Appendix 1a - Service Specification_Lot 1 and Appendix 1b - Service Specification_Lot 2. This procurement is split into two Lots: Lot 1 covers the districts of Bromsgrove, Redditch, Wyre Forest, as well as Great Witley and Tenbury Wells. Lot 2 covers the districts of Worcester City, Wychavon and Malvern Hills (excluding Great Witley and Tenbury Wells)

The Domestic Abuse Support Service (DASS) is a requirement to enable the Council to meet its statutory duty as set out in the Domestic Abuse Act 2021. This includes the provision of specialist domestic abuse support to adults and children living in emergency and safe house accommodation in addition to outreach services. The legal duties for County and District Councils included in the Domestic Abuse Act 2021 are to work together in partnership with stakeholders to ensure provision of appropriate emergency and safe accommodation with dedicated support for survivors aged 16 years and over affected by domestic abuse and their children. This includes provision meeting the required standard to address specific needs of minority groups and individuals with care and support needs to improve their health outcomes and address inequalities. Full details of the requirement can be found in Appendix 1 - Service Specification.

A Sanctuary Scheme is a multi-agency, survivor-centred initiative which aims to enable households at risk of violence to remain safely in their own homes by installing a 'Sanctuary' in the home and through the provision of support to the household. This is sometimes referred to as "target hardening". The Target Hardening Property Scheme for Worcestershire is being commissioned in conjunction with all six District Councils (Bromsgrove, Malvern Hills, Redditch, Worcester City, Wychavon & Wyre Forest) in Worcestershire. The intention is to create a single, high quality, responsive commissioned service across the County to provide Target Hardening to various levels within existing accommodation to enable survivors of Domestic Abuse to remain in their own homes. Sanctuary Schemes are referred to in the Domestic Abuse Act 2021, which places a strong emphasis on supporting survivors of domestic abuse and their children within safe accommodation.

Prior to a Leave to Remain (LTR) status being determined, Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children (UASC) have No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF) with all practical and financial support being provided by the Council, including accommodation. This also applies to NRPF families with children under 18 who have unsettled status The service specification outlines the requirements for 2 or 3 bedroom furnished accommodation for this cohort of vulnerable young adults and families with children under 18 years of age The Council are seeking to identify a service provider(s) to provide furnished accommodation for up to 18 young adults, and/or 6 families with varying ages of children, which will be split across districts, close to good transport links, schools and colleges, and other community services. The service will be split into the following lots, enabling service providers to bid for one or more lots; a) Lot 1 - Worcester City, b) Lot 2 – Redditch, c) Lot 3 - Kidderminster.

Please note: THIS IS NOT A CALL FOR COMPETITION Background Under recent changes to planning legislation, Worcestershire County Council (WCC) has a responsibility to prepare a Minerals and Waste Plan. We are currently considering how to prioritise the use of internal and external resources to achieve challenging timescales for plan preparation and we may seek to procure professional services to support this. Existing plans The Waste Core Strategy was adopted in 2012 and is likely to need a comprehensive update. Officers have started work on the evidence base and WCC consulted on an early draft of the Waste Needs Assessment in Spring 2026 to inform this process. The extant Waste Core Strategy does not contain site allocations. The Minerals Local Plan was adopted in July 2022. Officers anticipate that much of the strategic direction may remain, however changes will be required to reflect any changes in national and local policy since the plan was adopted. The extant Minerals Local Plan designated “areas of search” but no “specific site” or “preferred area” allocations. Commencing plan preparation under the new system Due to the different ages of the Waste Core Strategy and Minerals Local Plan, different dates apply by which a “notice of intention to commence minerals and waste plan document preparation” under Regulation 44 must be given, and by which Gateway 1 “self-assessment of readiness for minerals and waste plan document preparation” must be published under Regulation 46 to formally commence the 30-month plan preparation timescale: • For waste: o Notice of intention to commence must be given by 31st December 2026 at the latest, o Self-assessment summary (Gateway 1) published by 30th April 2027 at the latest. • For minerals: o Notice of intention to commence must be given by 14th March 2027 at the latest, o Self-assessment summary (Gateway 1) published by 14th July 2027 at the latest. WCC has not yet determined whether the first Minerals and Waste Plan under the 2026 plan-making regulations will be produced as: - a Minerals and Waste Plan as a single document; or - a Waste Plan Document (with a Minerals Plan Document to follow); or - a Minerals Plan Document (with a Waste Plan Document to follow); or - separate Minerals Plan and Waste Plan Documents produced concurrently. The choice of plan option is a political decision that will be made in due course. However, timescales under the new plan-making system mean that, whichever option is progressed, preparatory work, including procuring contracts for statutory assessments or other packages of work, is needed in advance. We are aware that a large number of Planning Authorities may be commencing plan preparation to very similar timescales, and we are therefore seeking input from potential providers to inform development of any tender packages. Please answer the questions in the attached document (click on Synopsis) at the following link https://www.in-tendhost.co.uk/worcestershire/aspx/ProjectManage/6224 and send your response back via email to [email protected] 4pm on Tuesday 21st July 2026. All responses will be treated as confidential and not shared with other organisations, however, the final specification and tender model may be influenced by this and other stakeholders. Please note that the values and term are estimative and can be higher or lower depending on the results of this market engagement exercise.