CS6089 Specialist Youth Services - SEND Provision

The Council currently funds a third-sector organisation to deliver free positive activities and informal education to children and young people (CYP) with SEND. These include both centre-based and outdoor activities, that usually take as well as various other venues in the community.

The Service is free for CYP aged 11 to 25 who have SEND (whether they have a formal diagnosis or not) and who are either residents of Tower Hamlets, attend secondary school or college in the borough, or are registered as attending a youth project in the borough. There is a strong emphasis in the service on working closely with schools, as well as a specific focus on emotional wellbeing, in recognition of the challenges that CYP with SEND may face in their day-to-day lives and in mainstream provision (e.g. accessibility issues, ableism, bullying).

The programme of activity includes 38 weeks of term-time, afterschool provision (c. 9 h per week), delivered through regular sessions on 3 x days per week. It also includes 10 weeks of holiday delivery, including during half-terms.

The initial contract duration is 2 years, with an option to extend for up to 2 years (1+1). The contract will run from 1st September 2026 to 31st August 2028, with the extension option until 31st August 2030.
Providers must deliver services from a designated building, whether it’s their own or leased, and this will be checked during the tender process.

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 was advertised openly using this notice: https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/028306-2026?origin=SearchResults&p=1

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

If you would like to attend, please send a message via the message centre in response to this message with confirmation of the name, position, email address and contact details of each attendee/s. You will gain access to this once you express an interest in the event, on this portal.

The deadline for registration is Thursday 16th April 2026 12.00. Failure to send contact details will result in invites not being issued to the online event.

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.