CP1299-16 Provision of Children Centre Services for Axe Valley, Honiton and Exmouth

Devon County Council (DCC) is seeking to procure a supplier of Children Centre Services. Children Centre Services are the key delivery mechanism for the local authority to meet their statutory duties referenced in the Childcare Act 2006, and Working Together 2013. They are seen as an integral part of how DCC carry out the duties set out in the Act above to improve the well-being of young children and reduce inequalities between them.
Children Centre Services are identified as key delivery partners within the Early Help strategy and Targeted Families Support programme (national Troubled Families Programme) and are critical to the delivery of Early Help to children and families from pre-birth through to 5 years of age.
The core purpose of children Centre Services is to improve outcomes for young children and their families and reduce inequalities between families in greatest need and their peers (Statutory Guidance and section 2 Childcare Act 2006.

Description of the procurement (nature and quantity of works, supplies or services or indication of needs and requirements)

The procurement is for three (3) Children’s Centres, located in Axe Valley, Honiton and Exmouth and cover a defined geographical area surrounding these centres. The Service Provider will work with partner agencies in an integrative and collaborative way to deliver an appropriate balance of universal and targeted services, dependant on an analysis of need in the reach area.
They will have and promote an intentionally inclusive ethos which ensures that the service actively recognises affirms and provides for diverse needs including awareness and understanding of all protected characteristics as stated in the Equality Act 2010.
Services will be provided from DCC owned buildings and will be leased to the provider for the term of the Contract and identify additional community venues in order to achieve full coverage of the reach to provide an outreach service for any family where there is an identified need to improve outcomes.

Children Centre Services are a universal provision for all families with children under 5. Children Centre Services must reach and tailor the Services they offer and develop towards the following Target Groups who have been identified through national guidance as being vulnerable to poor outcomes and find it hardest to access services:
lone parents, teenage mothers and pregnant teenagers, children from low income backgrounds, children living with domestic abuse, adult mental health issues and substance abuse, children ‘in need’ or with a child protection plan, children with additional needs, children of offenders and/ or those in custody, those with protected characteristics (as defined by the Equality Act 2010), adopted children and adopter families, children in the care of the local authority (looked after children), children being cared for by members of their extended family and families identified by the local authority as ‘troubled families’ who have children under five.
AVAILABILITY OF TENDER DOCS Devon County Council is providing the tender documents in PDF format within this Business Opportunities Area of the Supplying the South West e-Tendering Portal (ProContract), in order to give potential Applicants unrestricted, full, direct and free of charge access to the tender documents. NOTE: The tender documents within the Business Opportunities Area of the Portal are for information only and must not be used by Applicants to submit their tender response. Applicants should note that any information considered by the Authority to be of a confidential nature will not be included within the publicly available documents. NOTE: Only Applicants who have registered an interest will be notified of any updates or changes to this tender opportunity and the associated tender documents.”