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Children and Young People Independent Advocacy and Independent Visitor Service

Manchester City Council

This public procurement record has 3 releases in its history.

Award

01 Sep 2026 at 13:15

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Tender

14 Apr 2026 at 12:00

UK4 - Tender Notice
Planning

20 Jan 2026 at 11:08

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Manchester City Council procured children and young people’s independent advocacy and independent visitor services in Manchester. The service supports cared-for children, care leavers, 16- and 17-year-olds at risk of homelessness, and children and young people with care experience who want to complain or make representations about services. Advocacy must help children express their views, wishes, feelings and lived experience during disputes about local authority plans, while building confidence to self-advocate and providing practical support and personal development opportunities. The service must also analyse local, regional and national patterns from advocacy and lived experience to inform service improvement. Independent visiting covers cared-for children aged 8 to 18. This is a social work and related service, delivered in Manchester, with participation suitable for SMEs and VCSEs.

The procurement is complete and was awarded through an open procedure. One lot was evaluated on quality at 45%, social value at 20%, environment at 10% and price at 25%. The tender deadline was 19 May 2026 at 11:00, with enquiries closing on 12 May 2026 at 16:00; the award decision period ended on 28 July 2026. Five bids were received, with three reaching the final stage, including two from SMEs and one from a VCSE. Manchester City Council awarded the contract to Coram Voice (formerly Voice for the Child in Care) on 28 August 2026. The award is worth £696,325 excluding VAT (£835,590 including VAT). The contract runs from 1 November 2026 to 31 October 2029, with options to extend by one year plus one year, to a maximum end date of 31 October 2031.

This award demonstrates a substantial, multi-year requirement for specialist children’s advocacy and independent visiting in a local authority setting. A credible future competitor would need to support cared-for children, care leavers and other young people facing homelessness risk or wishing to challenge or complain about services. Relevant capability includes independent advocacy during disputes, helping children communicate their wishes and feelings, promoting self-advocacy, and providing practical support and personal development. Independent visitor provision for children aged 8 to 18 is also central. Providers should be able to capture and use children’s lived experience, analyse patterns and trends, and turn findings into service improvements. Strong social value and environmental delivery, alongside service quality, will matter materially in evaluation; the requirement is explicitly suitable for SMEs and VCSEs.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Children and Young People Independent Advocacy and Independent Visitor Service

Notice Description

Children and Young People Independent Advocacy and Independent Visitor Service Service requirements for the provision of: An Advocacy and Independent visitor Service for: Manchester Cared for Children and Young People who are Care Leavers. 16- and 17-year-old who are at risk of becoming homeless. Care experience/d Children and young people who want to make a complaint or representation about the services they are receiving from the Authority. An Independent Visitor service for Cared for children from 8 to 18 years old. The service should Provide independent support for Our Manchester Children and Young People who are Cared for or Care Leavers to ensure their views are heard and understood where there is a dispute with the local authority plan. Ensuring that their wishes, feelings and lived experience are taken into account when decisions are being taken about their lives. The advocacy service is specifically dedicated to giving Manchester cared for children and care leavers a voice, ensuring that they are the heart of everything Manchester does and giving them practical support and personal development opportunities, resulting in both direct and wider positive outcomes in their lives and services around them. The service should develop the skills and confidence in the children they are in contact with the advocate for themselves. The Advocacy Service should also ensure that the analysis of patterns and trends, locally, regionally and nationally from children's advocacy and the lived experience of our Manchester Children and Young People is utilised to inform local service delivery and continuous improvement.

Lot Information

Lot 1

Renewal: There is an option to extend for an additional 1 year + 1 year.

Planning Information

Manchester City Council in a bid to co-design the contract, invites existing and prospective providers of Children and Young People Advocacy and Independent Visitors service to submit a brief outlining their capacity and capability to deliver the specified provision. Submissions should be sent to: Bukola Aransiola, Senior Commissioning & Contracts Officer Bukola.Aransiola@manchester.gov.uk by 30th January 2026. In the brief, Manchester City Council seeks to understand Market capacity and capability Innovative delivery options Potential Risks, barriers and cost drivers.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-0609a7
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/082647-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Planning, Tender, Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK6 - Contract Award 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

85 - Health and social work services

CPV Codes

85300000 - Social work and related services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£696,646 £500K-£1M
Lots Value
£696,646 £500K-£1M
Awards Value
£696,325 £500K-£1M
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
1 Sep 20261 weeks ago
Submission Deadline
19 May 2026Expired
Future Notice Date
30 Jan 2026Expired
Award Date
28 Aug 20261 weeks ago
Contract Period
1 Nov 2026 - 31 Oct 2029 3-4 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Complete
Lots Status
Complete
Awards Status
Active
Contracts Status
Not Specified

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
Manchester City 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
MANCHESTER
Postcode
M60 2LA
Postcode Area
Manchester
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLD North West (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLD3 Greater Manchester
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLD33 Manchester
Delivery Location
TLD33 Manchester
Local Authority
Manchester
Electoral Ward
Piccadilly
Westminster Constituency
Manchester Central

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

Coram Voice

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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