CS6089 Specialist Youth Services - SEND Provision

Tower Hamlets Council is committed to strengthening specialist SEND provision across the borough, ensuring that children and young people with additional needs have access to safe, inclusive, and high-quality environments where they can participate in meaningful activities, develop essential life skills, and receive appropriate support. Improving outcomes for children and young people with SEND remains a central priority within the Tower Hamlets Young Tower Hamlets Strategy 2025-2027. Continued investment has been directed into the borough's SEND system to enhance the quality, accessibility, and consistency of support ensuring that young people are given the best possible start in life and equitable opportunities to thrive within their communities.

As part of this commitment, the Council's ambition to develop provision at ward level represents a key step towards creating a more localised, responsive model of support. High-quality centre-based SEND provision plays an important role in promoting wellbeing, developing independence, and supporting wider educational and social outcomes. The commissioned Specialist SEND Ward-Based Activity provision will therefore focus on delivering centre-based support in wards where in-house SEND youth provision is not currently available. This will ensure that all children and young people with SEND particularly those aged 11-19, or up to 25 with SEND-have access to free, accessible, and well-publicised specialist activities that are tailored to their needs, strengths, and aspirations.

The successful provider will be required to deliver services from a designated building within each ward or service lot. Providers may use their own premises or buildings leased for this purpose, and the suitability, accessibility, and quality of the proposed venue will form a key element of the tender evaluation. The expected offer must embed inclusive practice, promote healthy lifestyles, and provide safe but appropriately challenging spaces that enable personal development, social interaction, and increased independence for young people with SEND.

Engagement deadline
Wednesday 15th April 2026

Engagement process description
The purpose of this Preliminary Market Engagement Notice is to provide advance notice to the marketplace for the upcoming tender opportunity and the intention of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets to hold a preliminary market engagement session to identify potential suppliers to ensure the submission of strong bids.

Market Engagement Session

To provide potential suppliers with more information about the upcoming opportunity, we are hosting an online Market Engagement session that will take place on Microsoft Teams on Friday 17th April 2026 (14:00hours - 14:30hours). The session is advertised openly using this notice.

Suppliers wishing to attend the Preliminary market engagement session should be capable of meeting the procurement description/requirements outlined within this notification.

If you would like to attend, please register your interest free of charge at: www.londontenders.org (using reference DN811302) with confirmation of the name, position, email address and contact details of each attendee/s.

The deadline for registration is Wednesday 15th April 2026.

NOTE: Attendance at the market engagement is optional and does not provide suppliers with an advantage in any future related procurement. Attendance also does not constitute as an intention to tender for any future related procurement.