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Supported Employment Services

Dorset Council

This public procurement record has 4 releases in its history.

Award

02 Apr 2026 at 13:14

UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Award

26 Jan 2026 at 15:31

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Tender

10 Oct 2025 at 14:52

UK4 - Tender Notice
Planning

20 Jun 2025 at 14:14

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Dorset Council is undertaking the procurement of Supported Employment Services aimed at assisting individuals eligible under the Care Act living in Dorset, who are confronting learning disabilities, mental health challenges, and physical disabilities. The service focuses on adults aged 16 and above, enabling young individuals transitioning to adulthood to achieve their employment goals and social inclusion. An open tender procedure was executed, resulting in the active award of the contract to The YOU Trust, which commenced on the 1st of April 2026, with the final proposal submissions previously due by the 5th of November 2025. The procurement falls under the health and social work services industry category and covers the region of South West England (UKK25). This contract, valued at £1,080,000 gross, is poised to run initially for two years, with the possibility of three one-year extensions, subject to performance and funding.

The Supported Employment Services tender offers promising business growth opportunities for organisations with expertise in health, social work, and adult education services. The YOU Trust, a large voluntary and community sector enterprise (VCSE), has been awarded the contract to provide these services. The procurement was designed as a single contract approach without dividing the requirements into lots, encouraging comprehensive service delivery from suitable providers. For businesses specialising in employment and support services, particularly those in the VCSE sector, this presents an opportunity to expand their reach and impact within Dorset and draw on their experience to contribute to economic wellbeing and social inclusion. Continued funding and performance-based contract extensions further enhance the potential for substantial long-term involvement and influence in the region.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Supported Employment Services

Notice Description

Dorset Council carried out an open tender procedure in search for a single supplier to deliver a Dorset Supported Employment Service which supports Care Act eligible people living with learning disabilities, mental health needs and physical disabilities seeking employment and voluntary opportunities and supporting them to achieve economic wellbeing and social inclusion whilst maximising their potential as a person living in Dorset. The service will be for adults 16yrs+ and will be able to support young people as they enter adulthood, allowing them the opportunity to receive support to achieve their own employment goals. This is separate to the Connect to Work programme, however there will be a direct interface.

Lot Information

Lot 1

Options: The contracting authority reserves the right to extend or renew the term of the contract as stated above. The contracting authority reserves the right to additional goods, services, or works while the contract is valid. The Contracting Authority reserves the right to modify this contract during its term in accordance with Section 74(1)(a) and Paragraph 1 of Schedule 8 of the Procurement Act 2023. These modifications may include: * Adjustments to service volumes, or delivery locations within Dorset where they are necessary to respond to changes in funding, policy or service demand. * Changes to funding levels, including application of grant funding or budget reductions. * Further extensions (both for time and value), subject to performance and funding availability alongside governance approvals which might be necessary to respond to changes in funding, policy, or service demand. * Extension of the contract term beyond the 10 per cent provided in Section 74(3)a * Inclusion of additional supported employment needs, provided they fall within the broad scope of the original specification Any modification made under this clause will be documented and, where required, published. The contracting authority also reserves the right to carry out a subsequent procurement of similar goods, services or works in reliance on the direct award justification in paragraph 8 of Schedule 5 to the Procurement Act 2023.

Renewal: The Contract will be for an initial 2 years, with three optional 12-month extension periods (1+1+1), subject to satisfactory performance and funding, giving a potential total contract period of 5 years.

Planning Information

Dorset Council is undertaking a preliminary market engagement event, with the aim of requesting feedback from the supported employment provider market. The soft market testing exercise is intended to allow interested organisations with appropriate experience to express an interest in the opportunity and to outline their views and ideas about the future provision of these services, specifically in the following areas: • What works well in your area? • What barriers do we need to consider going forward? • What will make our service a success? We invite relevant companies and organisations to join us at a Preliminary Market Engagement Event on Wednesday 9th of July of 2025 at 2pm-3pm so that we can explore best practice and service design. To register your interest and to receive a MS Teams invite to the market engagement event, please send an email to adultscommissioningteam@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk by 5pm on Tuesday the 8th of July 2025. If your organisation is unable to attend the event but would like a copy of the slides, please also email adultscommissioningteam@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk to express an interest.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-0550f4
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/030879-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Planning, Tender, Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Open
Procurement Method Details
Open procedure
Tender Suitability
SME, VCSE
Awardee Scale
Large

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

80 - Education and training services

85 - Health and social work services

CPV Codes

80400000 - Adult and other education services

85000000 - Health and social work services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£900,000 £500K-£1M
Lots Value
£900,000 £500K-£1M
Awards Value
£900,000 £500K-£1M
Contracts Value
£900,000 £500K-£1M

Notice Dates

Publication Date
2 Apr 20264 months ago
Submission Deadline
5 Nov 2025Expired
Future Notice Date
22 Aug 2025Expired
Award Date
26 Jan 20267 months ago
Contract Period
1 Apr 2026 - 31 Mar 2028 2-3 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Complete
Lots Status
Complete
Awards Status
Active
Contracts Status
Active

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
Dorset Council
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
DORCHESTER
Postcode
DT1 1XJ
Postcode Area
Dorchester
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLK South West (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLK6 North Somerset, Somerset and Dorset
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLK64 Dorset
Delivery Location
TLK25 Dorset
Local Authority
Dorset
Electoral Ward
Dorchester West
Westminster Constituency
West Dorset

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

The YOU Trust

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

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The Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS) is a framework designed to increase transparency and access to public procurement data in the public sector. It is widely used by governments and organisations worldwide to report on procurement processes and contracts.

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