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Carers Support Service

Cornwall Council

This public procurement record has 3 releases in its history.

AwardUpdate

15 Sep 2026 at 12:59

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Award

15 Sep 2026 at 08:31

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Tender

16 Mar 2026 at 16:44

UK4 - Tender Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Cornwall Council commissioned countywide health and social care services for unpaid carers of all ages across Cornwall. The requirement covered information, advice, guidance and practical support to help carers maintain their caring role, including support for health and wellbeing, access to services, assessments, ongoing assistance, short breaks and community-based provision. It was divided into five service areas: a core carers service, young carers, parent carer specialist advice, mental health carer specialist advice and a specialist dementia service. Awards were made for the four specialist services, delivered across Cornwall. The core service concerned strategic coordination and development of carers’ support, including oversight of a development fund and specialist adviser provision.

The procurement used an above-threshold open procedure for services under the light-touch regime. It has been completed and awards were made on 14 May 2026: Barnardo’s won Young Carers for £2,068,865; Alzheimer’s Society won Specialist Dementia Service for £5,149,175; Rethink Trading Ltd won Mental Health Carer Specialist Advisor for £514,631; and Whitehead Ross Social Work Limited won Parent Carer Specialist Advisor for £514,631. Each contract runs from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2029, with Council options for extensions of two years, then one year and a further year, giving a maximum end date of 30 June 2033. Each lot was evaluated independently on quality 60%, price 25% and social value 15%. The core carers service received no award.

This requirement indicates sustained demand in Cornwall for specialist carer support delivered through health, social care and community-based models. Relevant competitors would need credible expertise in supporting young carers, parent carers, mental health carers or people affected by dementia, alongside the ability to provide advice, guidance, assessment, ongoing support, short breaks and links to wider services. Providers should be able to demonstrate strong safeguarding, statutory compliance, service quality, organisational stability and readiness to mobilise. The evaluation gives quality the greatest weight, with social value also significant, so evidence of effective outcomes, community engagement and local benefit would be important. The successful organisations show that large charities, specialist social care providers and social enterprises can compete for these services, while the procurement explicitly considered SMEs and VCSEs suitable.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Carers Support Service

Notice Description

Cornwall Council undertook a procurement for Carers Support Services across five lots to provide support to unpaid carers of all ages across Cornwall. The services provide information, advice, guidance and practical support to carers, helping them to maintain their caring role while supporting their health, wellbeing and access to services. This includes access to assessment, ongoing support, short breaks and community-based provision. The procurement was structured into the following five lots: Lot 1: Core Carers Service Lot 2: Young Carers Service Lot 3: Parent Carer Specialist Advisor Lot 4: Mental Health Carer Specialist Advisor Lot 5: Specialist Dementia Service Contracts have been awarded for Lots 2 to 5. No contract has been awarded for Lot 1 (Core Carers Service). The contracts awarded for Lots 2 to 5 are for an initial term of three years, with options to extend for a further two years, followed by two additional one-year extensions (3+2+1+1).

Lot Information

Core Carers Service

A countywide, community-based service responsible for the strategic coordination and development of support for Carers in Cornwall, including oversight of the development fund and the specialist adviser elements of the Carers offer.

Renewal: an initial term of three (3) years; and an option for the Council to extend the Term by a further two (2) years; and following the exercise of that first option, an option for the Council to extend the Term by a further one (1) year; and following the exercise of that second option, an option for the Council to extend the term by a further one (1) year. Any extension of the initial term is at the sole discretion of the Council and the maximum term of the Contract will not exceed seven (7) years.

Young Carers

Renewal: an initial term of three (3) years; and an option for the Council to extend the Term by a further two (2) years; and following the exercise of that first option, an option for the Council to extend the Term by a further one (1) year; and following the exercise of that second option, an option for the Council to extend the term by a further one (1) year. Any extension of the initial term is at the sole discretion of the Council and the maximum term of the Contract will not exceed seven (7) years.

Parent Carer Specialist Advisor

Renewal: an initial term of three (3) years; and an option for the Council to extend the Term by a further two (2) years; and following the exercise of that first option, an option for the Council to extend the Term by a further one (1) year; and following the exercise of that second option, an option for the Council to extend the term by a further one (1) year. Any extension of the initial term is at the sole discretion of the Council and the maximum term of the Contract will not exceed seven (7) years.

Mental Health Carer Specialist Advisor

Renewal: an initial term of three (3) years; and an option for the Council to extend the Term by a further two (2) years; and following the exercise of that first option, an option for the Council to extend the Term by a further one (1) year; and following the exercise of that second option, an option for the Council to extend the term by a further one (1) year. Any extension of the initial term is at the sole discretion of the Council and the maximum term of the Contract will not exceed seven (7) years.

Specialist Dementia Service

Renewal: an initial term of three (3) years; and an option for the Council to extend the Term by a further two (2) years; and following the exercise of that first option, an option for the Council to extend the Term by a further one (1) year; and following the exercise of that second option, an option for the Council to extend the term by a further one (1) year. Any extension of the initial term is at the sole discretion of the Council and the maximum term of the Contract will not exceed seven (7) years.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-066b85
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/087282-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
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, SME

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

85 - Health and social work services

CPV Codes

85000000 - Health and social work services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£20,149,267 £10M-£100M
Lots Value
£20,149,267 £10M-£100M
Awards Value
£7,732,671 £1M-£10M
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
15 Sep 2026Yesterday
Submission Deadline
26 Apr 2026Expired
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
14 May 20264 months ago
Contract Period
1 Jul 2026 - 30 Jun 2029 3-4 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

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

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
Cornwall 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
TRURO
Postcode
TR1 3AY
Postcode Area
Truro
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLK South West (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLK3 Cornwall and Isles of Scilly
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLK30 Cornwall and Isles of Scilly
Delivery Location
TLK3 Cornwall and Isles of Scilly
Local Authority
Cornwall
Electoral Ward
Truro Boscawen & Redannick
Westminster Constituency
Truro and Falmouth

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
3
Supplier Names

Barnardo's

Alzheimer's Society

Rethink 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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