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SEND Mediation and Disagreement Resolution Service

Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council

This public procurement record has 2 releases in its history.

Tender

05 Oct 2026 at 17:53

UK4 - Tender Notice
Planning

24 Jun 2026 at 16:33

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Rotherham Borough Council is commissioning an impartial special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) mediation and disagreement resolution service. It will provide confidential, independent mediation advice and mediation and disagreement resolution for children, young people and families in the Rotherham borough, supporting the Council’s statutory duties. The service covers disagreements about special educational provision and mediation before possible appeals to the SEND First-tier Tribunal, as well as relevant health and social care complaints concerning Education, Health and Care Plans. Delivery is expected to use a flexible hybrid model, with online mediation as the default. The service is classified as social work and related services (CPV 85300000).

The Council invited offers through a below-threshold, open competition. The tender deadline was 9 November 2026 at 10:00 UTC; responses were to be submitted through YORtender, with social value responses submitted through the Social Value Portal. The contract period is 1 April 2027 to 31 March 2032. The estimated value is £300,000 excluding VAT (£360,000 including VAT). The procurement is a single lot. Evaluation weights quality at 60%, social value at 20% and price at 20%. Quality assessment covers mobilisation, the service model, implementation of SEND reforms, outcomes and evaluation, information governance, early resolution, inclusive support, workforce and safeguarding. Social value is assessed quantitatively and qualitatively.

This opportunity suits providers able to deliver independent, impartial and confidential mediation for families and young people, including people with SEND, and to tailor support to individual needs and protected characteristics. The provider must be registered with the Civil Mediation Council, and all mediators must be CMC-registered, trained, qualified and experienced, and included on the SEND Mediator Register. Delivery requires a hybrid service with online mediation as the default, adherence to agreed case timetables, trauma-informed and parent-centred practice, and the capacity to collect service-user feedback and demonstrate improvements in satisfaction. Providers should be able to adapt service delivery to potential changes in SEND legislation, referral demand, eligibility, reporting and multi-agency working. The opportunity is also suitable for SMEs and voluntary, community and social enterprises.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

SEND Mediation and Disagreement Resolution Service

Notice Description

Rotherham Borough Council (RBC) are running a single procurement process that will result in the commissioning of an impartial SEND Mediation and Disagreement Resolution Service. 1The Children and Families Act 2014 (the "Act"), Chapter 6 sets out requirements regarding appeals, mediation and disagreement resolution for children and young people in England with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND). The Act was followed by the Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice 2015: 0 to 25 years. This Statutory Code of Practice sets out the guidance for organisations who work with and support children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities explaining their duties and responsibilities under Part 3 of the Act, details of the legal requirements that must be followed without exception and statutory guidance that must be followed by law (unless there is a legitimate reason not to). Both the Act and Code of Practice outline: * Early resolution of disagreements at a local level, * Independent disagreement resolution arrangements which local authorities must make available for disagreements across special educational provision, * Independent mediation arrangements which parents/carers and young people can use before deciding whether to appeal to the SEND First Tier Tribunal and for health and social care complaints in relation to Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs), * Conditions for appealing to the Tribunal or making disability discrimination claims. In addition, The Special Educational Needs and Disability Regulations 2014 set out in detail what is required by Local Authorities (LAs) for assessing the Education, Health and Care (EHC) needs of children and young people and, where necessary, drawing up EHC plans including the requirements regarding mediation and appeal. In order to ensure strong quality standards the Service Provider must be a Registered Provider with the Civil Mediation Council and ensure that all Mediators are trained, qualified and experienced and must be included on the SEND Mediator Register. The Service Provider must also provide a commitment to comply with any additional professional standards developed as a result of the SEND reforms. The Service Provider will provide confidential, independent and impartial mediation advice and Mediation and Disagreement Resolution Service to Service Users within the Rotherham borough in order to assist the discharge of statutory obligations under the Act and the Code of Practice. The Service Provider will ensure that the Service is: * Independent, confidential and impartial to Service Users, * Flexible yet cost effective, enabling Service Users to access the Service they need, when they need it. This Service should be a hybrid model with online mediation as the default. In providing the Service the Service Provider must ensure that it, and its staff: * Adhere to the agreed timetable throughout the process, * Demonstrate trauma-informed, parent-centered practice, * Seek feedback from Service Users to inform and influence service development as well as providing evidence of user satisfaction improvements, * Tailor the Service to individual Service User needs and especially in reference to groups with protected characteristics as defined in the Equality Act 2010, * Is a Civil Mediation Council (CMC) registered Provider and * Use only Mediators registered with the CMC. The current SEND reform programme and associated DfE policy development present a known risk which may necessitate future modifications of the contract. Whilst the final legislative and operational requirements are not yet fully defined, the reforms may result in changes to statutory mediation requirements, dispute resolution pathways, Individual Support Plan (ISP) arrangements, referral volumes, eligibility criteria, performance measures, reporting requirements, multi-agency working arrangements, and the respective responsibilities of Local Authorities, schools and health partners. Consequently, the Council may need to modify the contract during its term to reflect changes in legislation, statutory guidance, service delivery models, demand levels or commissioning requirements arising from the national SEND reform programme. Any modifications would be limited to those necessary to maintain statutory compliance, service continuity and effective delivery of the SEND Mediation and Disagreement Resolution Service.

Planning Information

The Council would like to engage with the market for the purpose of the recommissioning of the SEND Mediation and Disagreement Resolution Service. The Council will be hosting a market engagement event on Monday 6th July 2026 at 10.00am via Microsoft Teams. If you are interested in attending the event you can do so by registering at YORtender (https://yortender.eu-supply.com/login.asp?B=YORTENDER) and searching for YORtender ID 100111801. Once registered you will be able to download the service specification. Please send a message via YORtender if you wish to attend the event, a Teams invite will then be issued. The presentation at the event sets out the Local Authority's intentions ahead of a future procurement for SEND Mediation and Disagreement Resolution services. The purpose is to engage openly with potential providers, share strategic context, and shape a service model that delivers high-quality, independent, and trusted resolution for children, young people, and their families. This engagement is an opportunity to understand market capacity and test our specification before formal tendering begins. Ultimately, the Local Authority's aim is to commission a service that families trust, professionals value, and which supports better outcomes for children and young people with SEND while making effective use of public resources.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-06bc87
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/094014-2026
Current Stage
Tender
All Stages
Planning, Tender

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK4 - Tender Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Open
Procurement Method Details
Below threshold - open competition
Tender Suitability
SME, VCSE
Awardee Scale
Not specified

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
£300,000 £100K-£500K
Lots Value
£360,000 £100K-£500K
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
5 Oct 20263 weeks ago
Submission Deadline
9 Nov 20262 weeks to go
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
1 Apr 2027 - 31 Mar 2032 Over 5 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

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

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
Rotherham Metropolitan Borough 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
ROTHERHAM
Postcode
S60 1AE
Postcode Area
Sheffield
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLE Yorkshire and The Humber
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLE3 South Yorkshire
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLE34 Rotherham
Delivery Location
TLE31 Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham
Local Authority
Rotherham
Electoral Ward
Boston Castle
Westminster Constituency
Rotherham

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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