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Careline Contract for North Essex

Tendring District Council

This public procurement record has 3 releases in its history.

Award

07 Apr 2026 at 14:02

UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Award

01 Aug 2025 at 16:35

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Award

31 Jul 2025 at 17:08

UK5 - Transparency Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Tendring District Council has completed the procurement process for the "Careline Contract for North Essex," awarded directly to Colchester Amphora Trading Limited. The process was managed by Essex County Council as the procuring entity on behalf of Tendring District Council. The contract involves the transition of approximately 1,200 existing service users to Amphora's expanded Helpline service, which includes monitoring, response, lifting, CCTV monitoring, and call-handling services. The contract, initiated on 1st August 2025, will run until 31st March 2027, with a possibility of extension until 2028. Located in Clacton-on-Sea, the Council's decision was guided by the necessity for service continuity and integration with the North East Essex Health and Wellbeing Alliance's vision. The procurement method employed was a direct award, deemed necessary due to the exclusive capabilities of Amphora in delivering the required services.

This tender creates substantial opportunities for businesses operating in administration services, community service provision, domestic help, CCTV services, and home-help niches. Although the direct award limits competition, it highlights the strategic importance of partnerships with local authority-owned companies, offering insights into potential collaboration with public sector bodies. Companies with established connections in public health and wellbeing sectors, specifically those capable of providing comprehensive service packages, could find significant growth opportunities through similar tenders. The successful delivery of such services could enhance a company's portfolio, showcasing the ability to meet stringent public-sector demands and foster future collaborations, especially in light of local government reorganization plans.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Careline Contract for North Essex

Notice Description

The transfer of Tendring Careline's Service, circa 1,200 existing service-users to the expanded Helpline service provided by Amphora on 1 August 2025.

Procurement Information

Tendring District Council ('the Council') has a requirement for a monitoring, response, and lifting service to be provided to fee-paying Tendring residents and the tenants of its own sheltered housing schemes; along with a CCTV monitoring service and Out of Hours call-handling service that together maintain the range of services currently and previously provided by the Council's 'Careline' service. As a member of the North East Essex Health and Wellbeing Alliance, working in partnership with fellow local authorities and health bodies, the Council requires the provision of these services to align with the Alliance's aims and objectives for an integrated health system approach. Colchester Amphora Trading Limited (Amphora) is a subsidiary of Colchester City Council's wholly-owned arms length trading company Colchester Commercial (Holdings) Limited. It provides the 'Helpline' service which is identical to Careline in respect of its combined provision of a monitoring, response, and lifting service; CCTV monitoring; and Out of Hours call-handling service. As a local-authority owned company, Amphora has established relationships with key public sector partners engaged in the activity of the North East Essex Health and Wellbeing Alliance, as well as the Police in respect of CCTV monitoring and Colchester City Council in the provision of Out of Hours call-handling - which are integral in respect of future proposals for Local Government Reorganisation which, by 2028, will see Tendring District Council, Colchester City Council, Essex County Council and potentially other neighbouring district Councils merge to form a new Unitary authority with statutory responsibilities, amongst other things, for adult social care. Through market analysis at the time for determining the award of the contract, Amphora was found to be the only provider capable of delivering the full range of services to the required standard and within an appropriate timeframe that would align with the aims and objectives of the North East Essex Health and Wellbeing Alliance and the direction of travel in respect of Local Government Reorganisation. The Council's view is that the services cannot be disaggregated and provided separately; significant inefficiencies and negative staff resourcing implications would arise for the Council from disaggregation. The delivery of the Service was required to ensure uninterrupted service continuity to the older and vulnerable residents (Service Users). Accordingly the Council has decided to make a direct award to Amphora pursuant to Paragraphs 5 and 6, Schedule 5 of the Procurement Act, in that the Council has determined accordingly that a) competition for the Services is absent for technical reasons and b) due to exclusive rights held by Amphora including its relationship to Colchester City Council and, by extension, the North East Essex health and Wellbeing Alliance, only Amphora can supply the full range of services to the required standard and within the required timescales.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-056aa5
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/031496-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Direct
Procurement Method Details
Direct award
Tender Suitability
SME
Awardee Scale
SME

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

75 - Administration, defence and social security services

79 - Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security

92 - Recreational, cultural and sporting services

98 - Other community, social and personal services

CPV Codes

75100000 - Administration services

75200000 - Provision of services to the community

79622000 - Supply services of domestic help personnel

92222000 - Closed circuit television services

98513310 - Home-help services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
£473,200 £100K-£500K
Contracts Value
£469,500 £100K-£500K

Notice Dates

Publication Date
7 Apr 20264 months ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
31 Jul 20251 years ago
Contract Period
7 Aug 2025 - 31 Mar 2027 1-2 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
Tendring District 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
CLACTON-ON-SEA
Postcode
CO15 1SE
Postcode Area
Colchester
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLH East (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLH3 Essex
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLH34 Essex Haven Gateway
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Tendring
Electoral Ward
Pier
Westminster Constituency
Clacton

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

COLCHESTER AMPHORA TRADING LIMITED

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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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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