Advocacy Services

Bracknell Forest Council’s Adult Social Care Health and Housing department is seeking to commission a locally-focussed, holistic solution for Bracknell Forest residents. This will represent a move away from the various and more complex Berkshire, cluster and council area arrangements which have existed in the past.

The four services that are being commissioned (either collectively, separately or a mixture) are;

Lot 1 - Independent Mental Capacity Advocacy (IMCA): Independent mental capacity advocates are available to represent people who lack capacity to make decisions about serious medical treatment, the provision of or change of accommodation, where there are no relatives or friends to act on their behalf.

Lot 2 - Independent Mental Health Advocacy (IMHA): Independent mental health advocates (IMHAs) aim to enable residents to participate in decisions about their care and treatment.

Lot 3 - Independent Health Complaints Advocacy: Providing support to people wishing to make a complaint about services from the NHS.

Lot 4 - General Social Care Advocacy: Provide Independent advocacy to eligible residents (rather than just people referred by the Local Authority) from the point of first contact with the local authority through to any subsequent stage of the assessment, planning, care review, safeguarding enquiry or safeguarding adult review.

Additional information: Organisations must register their interest against this advert on the South East Business Portal in order to receive any changes or notifications issued by the Council during this tender process. The Council will not be held responsible for lack of communication to any organisation who does not register their interest

The contract duration for each Lot, will be for a maximum of five years, covering an initial period of two years plus three optional extensions, each of one year in duration (i.e. 2+1+1+1=5). The reason for the one year extensions is due to uncertainty over funding. If there is a reduction in this funding then the contract will be renegotiated with the Contractor(s). The Lots are not a fixed price contract.

Estimated contract value (all four lots) ranges from £280,000 - £825,000 dependant on final contract length.

The Council is seeking to commission with either;

• One provider, to deliver all services
• Four providers, providing four separate services, or
• A mix of providers, delivering a mix of services.

This procurement process is being completed under the “Light Touch Regime”, governing “Social and Other Specific Services” detailed in the Public Contracts Regulations 2015. The Council will evaluate the tenders in stages which will be detailed in the procurement documents. The number of stages will depend on the level of interest received. As a minimum, providers will need to demonstrate their experience of providing advocacy services and transferring staff from other provider(s) where relevant. Tenderers' turnover should equal at least double the annual contract value tendered. ** Update 22-Mar-16 Clarifications added to South East Business Portal**