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COMMS-Family Advocacy Service for Bereaved Families following a Death in Prison Custody

Scottish Government

This public procurement record has 3 releases in its history.

Award

05 Aug 2026 at 01:00

OJEU - F3 - Contract Award Notice
Tender

25 Mar 2026 at 00:00

OJEU - F2 - Contract Notice
Planning

09 Dec 2025 at 00:00

OJEU - F1 - Prior Information Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The Scottish Government commissioned an independent Family Advocacy Service for families following the death of a loved one in prison custody. The service provides specialist support, representation and advocacy throughout complex post-death processes, ensuring families are supported, heard and empowered. The provider must manage, administer and coordinate high-quality advocacy for all eligible service users who request support; design and operate the service in line with the specification; and maintain consistent local delivery across Scotland. It must work independently of Scottish Ministers, the Scottish Prison Service, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and other statutory bodies. The provider is also responsible for monitoring delivery, supplying robust performance information and improving services where necessary. This is a specialist advocacy and family-support service delivered across Scotland, classified under CPV 98000000.

The procurement is complete and was awarded through an open procedure. AdvoCard was selected for the single lot, and the contract is active. The award date was 22 July 2026 and the contract was signed on that date. The contract value is £450,000. The initial contract period is 360 days, with an option for two further 12-month extensions, subject to a latest end date in 2029. Four electronic bids were received, all from SMEs. Evaluation weighted quality at 80% and price at 20%; bidders also had to pass the SPD exclusion and selection requirements. These included a current ratio of at least 1.0, £2 million public liability insurance and £2 million professional indemnity insurance. The procurement required English-language submissions and bids to remain valid for 180 days.

This award demonstrates demand from the Scottish Government for a coordinated, nationwide advocacy service supporting families after deaths in prison custody. A credible future provider would need established expertise in independent, trauma-informed advocacy and the ability to represent and support people through complex post-death processes with dignity, fairness and respect. The requirement favours organisations able to operate consistently across Scotland, manage local delivery arrangements and maintain effective systems for coordinating staff, service users and stakeholders. Strong monitoring, reporting and service-improvement capability would be important, alongside named staff with relevant qualifications. Suppliers should be able to demonstrate sound financial management, appropriate insurance, resilient supply-chain controls, prompt subcontractor payment, environmental management measures and a clear approach to subcontracting. Commitment to the real Living Wage and subcontractor-payment standards is also relevant.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

COMMS-Family Advocacy Service for Bereaved Families following a Death in Prison Custody

Notice Description

The Scottish Government seeks to commission an independent Family Advocacy Service to provide specialist support and representation to families following the death of a loved one in prison custody. The service will be independent, trauma-informed, and rooted in advocacy principles, ensuring families are supported, heard, and empowered throughout complex post-death processes.

Lot Information

Lot 1

The Service Provider must: - Manage, administer and coordinate the delivery of high-quality advocacy support to all eligible Service Users who request support following a death in prison custody. - Design the service to deliver the activities within the Specification. - Put in place systems, agreements and processes to ensure local delivery of advocacy support are consistently available across the whole of Scotland. - Deliver the service independently of both Scottish Ministers, Scottish Prison Service, COPFS, and other statutory bodies. - Monitor service delivery; provide the Purchaser with robust monitoring information; and act when needed to improve services. - Ensure that Service Users, staff and other stakeholders are treated with dignity, fairness and respect.. The Contract may be extended by two 12-month periods, to a date falling no later than 31 August 2029.

Renewal: Scottish Government reserve the right to extend for up to two 12-month periods to a date no later than 31 July 2029.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-r6ebe6-0000815435
Publication Source
Public Contracts Scotland
Latest Notice
https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=AUG561643
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Planning, Tender, Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
OJEU - F3 - Contract Award Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Open
Procurement Method Details
Open procedure
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
SME

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

98 - Other community, social and personal services

CPV Codes

98000000 - Other community, social and personal services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£450,000 £100K-£500K
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
£450,000 £100K-£500K

Notice Dates

Publication Date
5 Aug 20263 weeks ago
Submission Deadline
29 Apr 2026Expired
Future Notice Date
5 Jan 2026Expired
Award Date
22 Jul 20261 months ago
Contract Period
Not specified - Not specified
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

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

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
Scottish Government
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
GLASGOW
Postcode
G2 8LU
Postcode Area
Glasgow
Country
Scotland
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLM Scotland
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLM3 West Central Scotland
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLM32 Glasgow City
Delivery Location
TLM Scotland
Local Authority
Glasgow City
Electoral Ward
Anderston/City/Yorkhill
Westminster Constituency
Glasgow North

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

AdvoCard

Further Information

Notice Documents

  • https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=DEC545239
    COMMS-Family Advocacy Service for Bereaved Families following a Death in Prison Custody - The Scottish Government seeks to commission an independent Family Advocacy Service to provide specialist support and representation to families following the death of a loved one in prison custody. The service will be independent, trauma-informed, and rooted in advocacy principles, ensuring families are supported, heard, and empowered throughout complex post-death processes.
  • https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=MAR552444
    COMMS-Family Advocacy Service for Bereaved Families following a Death in Prison Custody - The Scottish Government seeks to commission an independent Family Advocacy Service to provide specialist support and representation to families following the death of a loved one in prison custody. The service will be independent, trauma-informed, and rooted in advocacy principles, ensuring families are supported, heard, and empowered throughout complex post-death processes.
  • https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=AUG561643
    COMMS-Family Advocacy Service for Bereaved Families following a Death in Prison Custody - The Scottish Government seeks to commission an independent Family Advocacy Service to provide specialist support and representation to families following the death of a loved one in prison custody. The service will be independent, trauma-informed, and rooted in advocacy principles, ensuring families are supported, heard, and empowered throughout complex post-death processes.

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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