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Suffolk Alternative Provision Tier One (Outreach) Service

Suffolk County Council

This public procurement record has 3 releases in its history.

Award

07 Oct 2026 at 10:26

UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Award

20 Jul 2026 at 15:00

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Tender

01 May 2026 at 14:39

UK4 - Tender Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Suffolk County Council commissioned an Alternative Provision Tier One outreach service for children in Key Stages 1 to 4 who have emerging or complex needs. The provider delivers targeted early support within mainstream schools, tailoring interventions to individual pupils and working with schools, other agencies, parents and carers, and the young people. The aim is to address barriers to learning, improve engagement and attainment, promote inclusion and help pupils remain in their referring school rather than face exclusion or rely on other services. This is education and training work, with a health and social support dimension. Delivery is across Suffolk.

The procurement is complete and the contract was awarded to Raedwald Trust following an open procedure. The award was made on 20 July 2026. The contract is valued at £1.6 million excluding VAT (£1.92 million including VAT), covering an initial two-year term from 1 September 2026 to 31 August 2028, with an option to extend by up to 24 months, to 31 August 2030. One lot covered the service. Evaluation weighted price at 30%; safeguarding, delivery and methodology, strategic oversight and outcomes, and staffing at 15% each; and social value at 10%. Five bids were received. The contract was signed on 29 September 2026.

For suppliers preparing for similar Suffolk work, this award shows demand for tailored early intervention that enables vulnerable pupils to stay in mainstream education. Credible providers need to demonstrate Ofsted registration for education provision and a rating of at least Good, or Expected across all areas under the framework introduced in November 2025. The selection requirements also covered financial capacity and appropriate insurance, manageable data protection risk under UK GDPR, and a health and safety policy supported by arrangements aligned with a recognised management system. Evidence of maintaining healthy subcontractor supply chains was required where subcontractors were used. Strong delivery proposals need to address safeguarding, staffing, methodology, strategic oversight, outcomes and social value, alongside price. The council flagged possible future changes to service scope or contract arrangements arising from local government reorganisation and devolution.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Suffolk Alternative Provision Tier One (Outreach) Service

Notice Description

Suffolk County Council (SCC) have awarded a contract for an Alternative Provision Tier One (Outreach) Service for an initial two-year period. Whilst the contract was signed on 29 September 2026, the contract commenced on 01 September 2026. The service involves delivering targeted early support within mainstream schools, supporting children across all Key Stages 1 - 4, to address emerging needs promptly. The goal is to provide assistance before challenges escalate for children, reducing the likelihood of exclusion, maximising engagement and participation in learning and promoting inclusion with the mainstream educational environment. Timely outreach support and robust intervention with Children and Young People (CYP) to ensure they can succeed and remain in mainstream education will raise education attainment and skill levels. This is important as these CYP are often our most vulnerable in our communities and failure to secure a good quality educational offer can often lead to a reliance upon other services such as social care or mental health providers. The CYP who will be referred, and who will access the Tier 1 Outreach support, will have complex needs that will require the provider to tailor their approach to the individual needs of the young person. This will involve working in partnership with other agencies, schools and stakeholders as well as parents/carers and the young people themselves to ensure best outcomes. The primary objective of Tier 1 AP is to provide specific support around barriers to learning and enable pupils to remain in their referring school. The Special Educational Needs/Alternative Provision Service Development Team has a core focus on commissioning high quality educational provision for vulnerable and disadvantaged learners as well as ensuring that this cohort of pupils can make progress based on age, ability and prior achievement through easy access to a robust 'Local Offer' as set out in the SEND reforms (Special Education Needs and Disability Code of Practice: 0 to 25 years). Historically there has been a significant increase in the number of young people permanently excluded across all Key Stages. Suffolk County Council has a continued commitment to provide the right intervention at the right time. As such, this Tier 1 AP Outreach programme can have a key impact to avoid exclusion. The contract value in this notice includes the optional 24-month extension period.

Lot Information

Lot 1

Renewal: Contract can be extended by up to 24 months.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-069079
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/094564-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Tender, Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Open
Procurement Method Details
Open procedure
Tender Suitability
SME, VCSE
Awardee Scale
SME

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

80 - Education and training services

85 - Health and social work services

CPV Codes

80000000 - Education and training services

85000000 - Health and social work services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£1,600,000 £1M-£10M
Lots Value
£1,600,000 £1M-£10M
Awards Value
£1,600,000 £1M-£10M
Contracts Value
£1,600,000 £1M-£10M

Notice Dates

Publication Date
7 Oct 20262 weeks ago
Submission Deadline
27 May 2026Expired
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
20 Jul 20263 months ago
Contract Period
29 Sep 2026 - 31 Aug 2028 1-2 years
Recurrence
2028-04-01

Notice Status

Tender Status
Complete
Lots Status
Complete
Awards Status
Active
Contracts Status
Active

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
Suffolk County 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
IPSWICH
Postcode
IP1 2BX
Postcode Area
Ipswich
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLH East (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLH6 Suffolk
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLH62 Ipswich
Delivery Location
TLH14 Suffolk CC
Local Authority
Ipswich
Electoral Ward
Gipping
Westminster Constituency
Ipswich

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

RAEDWALD TRUST

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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