Planning

Procurement of Legal Investigation and Advocacy Service in Fitness to Practise

SOCIAL WORK ENGLAND

This public procurement record has 2 releases in its history.

Planning

01 Dec 2025 at 16:25

UK3 - Planned Procurement Notice
Planning

31 Oct 2025 at 15:43

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Social Work England, a public authority within the central government based in Sheffield, United Kingdom, is in the planning stage of a procurement process titled "Procurement of Legal Investigation and Advocacy Service in Fitness to Practise." This service falls under the legal advisory and representation services industry category. The procurement method selected is an open, competitive, flexible procedure, with an estimated contract value of £40,900,000. The key dates include the enquiry period ending on 23rd February 2026, the tender submission period closing on 28th February 2026, and the contract award expected by 1st May 2026. The contract, renewable for up to two 12-month extensions, will span from 1st June 2026 to 31st May 2029.

This tender provides significant opportunities for legal firms with expertise in regulatory and fitness to practise services. Businesses specialising in legal advocacy, particularly those experienced in handling cases involving social worker conduct and competence, can benefit greatly from this opportunity. The project's large budget and the potential for contract renewal further enhance its attractiveness. Given the complex needs of Social Work England, suppliers capable of managing high volumes of cases and offering comprehensive advocacy and investigation services are well-suited to compete in this tender, promising substantial business growth and engagement in public sector projects.

How relevant is this notice?

Notice Information

Notice Title

Procurement of Legal Investigation and Advocacy Service in Fitness to Practise

Notice Description

Introduction - Fitness to Practise As part of our duty to protect the public, if a social worker falls seriously short of the standards expected of them, we can either remove them from the register or restrict what they can do professionally. These powers, given to us by Parliament, cover all registered social workers across both child, family and adult social care. A social workers' fitness to practise may be found impaired for a number of reasons, including but not limited to: * Conduct * Competence * Health * Caution, Conviction or determination by another regulator * Not having the necessary knowledge of English When a service user, member of the public, employers or other public body has a concern about the standard of a social worker's practise, they can raise this with Social Work England. We will undertake to investigate serious matters which may pose a risk to public protection or public confidence in the profession and take action to restrict a social worker's practice in circumstances where it is necessary to do so. The successful Bidder/s will prepare cases for a fitness to practise hearings or meetings and to present cases before Social Work England's adjudicators.

Lot Information

Lot 1

Renewal: Up to two extensions for 12 months each has been allocated.

Planning Information

This engagement set out to understand the current availability and skill set available by Fitness to Practise specialists. Social Work England presented to suppliers in July, from there 121 meetings occurred to gain feedback from interested suppliers.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-05d84e
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/078630-2025
Current Stage
Planning
All Stages
Planning

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK3 - Planned Procurement Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Open
Procurement Method Details
Competitive flexible procedure
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
Not specified

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

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

CPV Codes

79110000 - Legal advisory and representation services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£34,083,333 £10M-£100M
Lots Value
£34,083,333 £10M-£100M
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
1 Dec 20253 days ago
Submission Deadline
28 Feb 20263 months to go
Future Notice Date
5 Jan 20262 months to go
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
31 May 2026 - 31 May 2029 3-4 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Planned
Lots Status
Planned
Awards Status
Not Specified
Contracts Status
Not Specified

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
SOCIAL WORK ENGLAND
Contact Name
Wayne Kehoe
Contact Email
tenders@socialworkengland.org.uk
Contact Phone
Not specified

Buyer Location

Locality
SHEFFIELD
Postcode
S3 8JY
Post Town
Sheffield
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLE Yorkshire and The Humber
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLE3 South Yorkshire
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLE32 Sheffield
Delivery Location
TLE3 South Yorkshire
Local Authority
Sheffield
Electoral Ward
City
Westminster Constituency
Sheffield Central

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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