Open Market Engagement Notice for providing work experience and industry placement links for Croydon College study programme students

This PIN is for market pre-engagement only and is not a call for competition.

Croydon College wants to go through a formal procurement process to select a suitable provider who is able to source work experience and industry placements for its students aged 16 - 18 who are enrolled on study programmes. This notice is intended to invite an open conversation between the College and potential providers.

We would like to invite interested parties to attend an open session, which will be hosted on Microsoft Teams on Wednesday 30th June between 2:00pm - 3:00pm.

At this event, Croydon College will share information on the opportunity, with time allowed for mutual questions between the College and the providers in attendance.

To register for the session and to receive the Teams invite, please email WEXTenderBid@croydon.ac.uk by Tuesday 29th June.

Additional information: Croydon College is a medium sized general Further Education college, with campuses located in Croydon and Coulsdon. Every year, the College delivers courses to students aged 16 - 18, whose programme of study includes an element of work experience, ranging from several hours for basic Work Experience to several hundred hours for Industry Placements. Experience in the workplace is a key component of overall student experience that enriches students' programmes and develops their employability skills that in turn enhance their progression opportunities after they complete their study with Croydon College.

To maximise the College's access to high quality employers who can provide its students with suitable work placement, the College is seeking to outsource approximately 50% of its work placement referral load to an experienced organisation. The successful tenderer will have a robust track record in arranging suitable Work Experience (WEX) and Industry Placement (IP) referrals for college students.

As the environment that might continue to be affected by Covid19 for some time, the College wishes to retain flexibility when it comes to face to face and virtual / online work placement. An organisation with a track record in hosting virtual work experience workshops for students, with employer participation will also be sought.

The maximum contract value is £62,500 plus VAT, representing a target of approximately 1,300 work placement referrals (1,100 WEX and 200 IP).

We would like to invite interested partners to attend an open session being hosted on Microsoft Teams on Wednesday 30th June between 2:00 - 3:00pm. In this market engagement event session, the College intends to provide a short presentation on its expectations and seek comments and questions to ensure the tender bid reflects all possible queries. .

To register for the 2:00pm session on the 30th June and to receive the Teams invite, please email WEXTenderBid@croydon.ac.uk by 29th June.