Planning

Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Inclusion Continuing Professional Development (CPD) March 2026

DEPARTMENT FOR EDUCATION

This public procurement record has 2 releases in its history.

PlanningUpdate

23 Apr 2026 at 15:28

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Planning

03 Mar 2026 at 16:34

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The Department for Education is actively involved in planning a procurement process for the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Inclusion Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programme. This initiative, located within the UK, emphasises adult and vocational education services, personal development training services, and more. As part of an early market engagement stage, the DfE is seeking input and participation from potential suppliers to help shape the programme's development across early years, schools, and colleges. Key dates include an online market engagement event scheduled for 10th March 2026, with further details and follow-up possible. The procurement planning phase is scheduled to conclude with a formal tender launch on 1st September 2026, aiming for contracts lasting until 30th August 2030.

This tender presents significant opportunities for Small to Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprises (VCSEs), and consortia of different organisations. The scope for collaboration and consortia bids invites diverse business types to engage across multiple aspects like content development, materials production, digital platform development, and training facilitation. With attention to market capacity, capability, and appetite, this procurement process encourages innovation and broad participation, possibly leading to business expansion and increased market presence for successful bidders. More details, including participation requirements, can be accessed via the Department for Education's eSourcing Portal.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Inclusion Continuing Professional Development (CPD) March 2026

Notice Description

The DfE is keen to maximise opportunities to participate in procurement for Small to Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) and Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprises (VCSEs). Consideration will also be given to consortia and collaborative bids from all forms of organisations.

Planning Information

Open early engagement - This means that a procurement idea is currently active, it is in the early stage of development and judging interest from potential suppliers. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/200-million-landmark-send-teacher-training-programme On 16th January 2026, the government announced a £200 million investment in SEND teacher training. This landmark programme will develop and deliver continuing professional development (CPD) available to all education professionals. The CPD will deepen their knowledge of how to adapt their practice and improve inclusion in their educational setting, to better meet the needs of children and young people with SEND within the mainstream educational system. The package was described as including: •A package of high-quality training materials to be shared with every school and further education setting to support the delivery of training to all staff on SEND and inclusion. •New, free CPD courses for teachers and leaders in schools and further education settings. •Investment in training for teaching and learning support assistants ensuring support staff feel equipped and confident to support learners with SEND. •A new Early Years CPD programme, providing free, accessible training focused on inclusive practice, child development, and practical strategies for supporting children with SEND – available to all early years practitioners. The Department for Education (DfE) is commencing market engagement and seeking feedback to inform strategy and broad programme thinking currently in development across early years, schools and colleges. The projects are at various stages in development and have distinct requirements. This could include: Content development Materials production (primarily in relation to national training programmes, but also looking at materials to support schools and colleges to develop in-house professional development) Course development Participant recruitment and onboarding Developing digital platforms / hosting materials Training facilitation Policy areas in scope for this exercise are: Early years (course delivery commencing April 2027) Schools (materials for in-house professional development delivery launching September 2026; course delivery launching Autumn 2027) Further education (materials for in-house professional development delivery launching September 2026; course delivery launching Autumn 2027) Including School Teaching Assistants and FE support staff (course delivery launching Autumn 2027) We look to consult the market on how the provision could address the following audiences: Teachers (at all phases) Leaders (at all phases) School Teaching Assistants and FE support staff Early years practitioners Key commercial objectives of the engagement event are: Understand market capacity, capability and appetite for each requirement Obtain feedback on prospective commercial approaches Interested parties are invited to attend an online market engagement event to be held Tuesday 10th March, to hear further details about this opportunity and share thoughts and questions about the future programme through a feedback questionnaire. Please note, in the interest of fairness, attendance will be limited to 2 people per organisation. Follow up 1-2-1 interviews may be scheduled at the discretion of the Department, and further information on this will be shared during the event. DfE may also decide to host further engagement events prior to the launch of a formal tender process. Further details will be provided in due course. DfE reserve the right to utilise the below referenced SSQ and the suppliers registered to ciruclate additional questionnaires related to some or all of the projects detailed in this notice. This market engagement notice does not signify the commencement of any competitive process, nor does it constitute a commitment to any future procurement activity. To participate in this Market Engagement, participants must first be registered on the Department for Education eSourcing Portal Jaggaer. If you have not yet registered on the eSourcing Portal, this can be done online at https://education.app.jaggaer.com by following the link 'To register click here'. Navigate to ssq_762 and express your interest. For technical assistance on use of the eSourcing Portal, please contact the Jaggaer Supplier Helpdesk at customersupport@jaggaer.com or 0800 069 8630 (0800 - 1800hrs). If you are unable to attend the market engagement event, the slides and Q&A outcomes will be made available to you, provided you have registered your interest on Jaggaer prior to the event. All communication should be via the Jaggaer platform.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-066174
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/037266-2026
Current Stage
Planning
All Stages
Planning

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Not Specified
Procurement Method Details
Not specified
Tender Suitability
SME, VCSE
Awardee Scale
Not specified

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

80 - Education and training services

CPV Codes

80000000 - Education and training services

80340000 - Special education services

80400000 - Adult and other education services

80500000 - Training services

80530000 - Vocational training services

80570000 - Personal development training services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
23 Apr 20261 months ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
1 Sep 20263 months to go
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
31 Aug 2026 - 30 Aug 2030 3-4 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Planning
Lots Status
Planning
Awards Status
Not Specified
Contracts Status
Not Specified

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
DEPARTMENT FOR EDUCATION
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
LONDON
Postcode
SW1P 3BT
Post Town
South West London
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLI London
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLI3 Inner London - West
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLI35 Westminster and City of London
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Westminster
Electoral Ward
St James's
Westminster Constituency
Cities of London and Westminster

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

Download

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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