--- title: "Investment in Supported Internships Programme" ocid: "ocds-b5fd17-2de04597-171c-4420-bafe-057660229852" canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-2de04597-171c-4420-bafe-057660229852" markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-2de04597-171c-4420-bafe-057660229852.md" json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-2de04597-171c-4420-bafe-057660229852.json" source: "Contracts Finder" current_stage: "Award" buyer: "DEPARTMENT FOR EDUCATION" published: "2025-05-09" --- # Investment in Supported Internships Programme Buyer: DEPARTMENT FOR EDUCATION Current stage: Award OCID: ocds-b5fd17-2de04597-171c-4420-bafe-057660229852 [View canonical contract page](https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-2de04597-171c-4420-bafe-057660229852) [Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-2de04597-171c-4420-bafe-057660229852.json) ## Summary The Department for Education has successfully completed the procurement process for the "Investment in Supported Internships Programme" through an open procedure. This initiative aims to expand the Supported Internships programme to facilitate employment for young individuals with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) across various regions including the UK, Europe, and beyond. The procurement is in the "Award" stage, following updates on 11th April 2025, which extended the project completion date to 31st March 2026. The total contract value now stands at £7,508,857.16 excluding VAT, distributed across two Lots: the first for strengthening the programme and the second for delivering job coach training. The industry category is education and training services, and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are encouraged to participate. This tender presents significant opportunities for businesses operating in education and training, particularly those with expertise in providing supported internship programmes or training job coaches. It is ideally suited for SMEs looking to expand their service offerings to the public sector, as well as organisations focused on inclusive education initiatives. The expansion and extension of this programme can drive business growth through the provision of vital educational services, with the potential to make substantial contributions to improving employment outcomes for SEND youth across diverse geographical locations. The involvement of both small enterprises and voluntary sector organisations is encouraged, allowing for a wide range of business opportunities within this framework. ## Notice Supported Internships (SIs) are a work-based study programme for 16-24 year olds with SEND who have an Education Health and Care plan, who want to move into employment and who need extra support to do so. SIs are designed to equip young people with the skills they need to secure and sustain employment through learning in the workplace. The DfE wants to build the capacity of the SI programme and are aiming to double the number of SIs from c.2,250 internship enrolments per annum to c.4,500 per annum by 2025. Following an open procurement process in compliance with the Public Contract Regulations (2015) (as amended). Contracts have been awarded to deliver services to meet these aims: Lot 1 'Strengthening the Supported Internships Programme' worth up to a maximum total value of PS4,537,165.04 (exc VAT) Lot 2 'Delivery of Job Coach training' worth up to a maximum total value of 1,219,651.50 (exc VAT) Both contracts will run until 31st March 2024, at which point, a further 12 month extension may be exercised at the discretion of the Contracting Authority. On 09/11/2023 a variation was completed on the Lot 1 contract 'Strengthening the Supported Internships Programme' to administer and monitor additional grants to local authorities to test the supported internships model for those with Learning Disabilities and Difficulties but without Education, Health and Care plans (EHCPs). The additional cost of this variation is PS197,285.92 (exc. VAT) bringing the Lot 1 contract value total to PS4,734,450.96 (exc. VAT). The total value of both contracts is now PS5,954,102.46 (exc. VAT). On 11th April 2025 a variation was completed to extend both the Lot 1 and Lot 2 contracts for a further 12 months with a revised end date of 31st March 2026. This takes the contract totals to: Lot 1: PS5,966,482.76 (excl. VAT) Lot 2: PS1,542,374.40 (excl. VAT) Total for both contracts: PS7,508,857.16 (excl. VAT) ## Key Details | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication source | Contracts Finder | | Latest notice | https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/d748aa3d-cd1d-4fd2-96e4-ef45b28535d9 | | Notice type | Award Notice | | Procurement type | Standard | | Procurement category | Services | | Procurement method | Open | | Procurement method details | Open procedure (above threshold) | | Tender suitability | SME, VCSE | | Awardee scale | SME | | All stages | Award | ## Dates | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication date | 9 May 2025 | | Submission deadline | 13 May 2022 | | Future notice date | Not specified | | Award date | 31 Aug 2022 | | Contract period | 31 Aug 2022 - 31 Mar 2026 | | Recurrence | Not specified | ## Values | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender value | £7,508,857 | | Lots value | Not specified | | Awards value | £13,265,673 | | Contracts value | Not specified | ## Status | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender status | Complete | | Lots status | Not specified | | Awards status | Active | | Contracts status | Not specified | ## Buyer | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Main buyer | DEPARTMENT FOR EDUCATION | | Locality | MANCHESTER | | Post town | Manchester | | Postcode | M1 2WD | | Country | England | | ITL 1 | TLD North West (England) | | ITL 2 | TLD3 Greater Manchester | | ITL 3 | TLD33 Manchester | | Local authority | Manchester | | Electoral ward | Piccadilly | | Westminster constituency | Manchester Central | | Delivery location | Not specified | ## Supplier | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Number of suppliers | 3 | | Supplier names | BASE (TRADING AS INCLUSIVE TRADING; BRITISH ASSOCIATION FOR SUPPORTED EMPLOYMENT (BASE) TRADING; THE NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT TEAM FOR INCLUSION | ## CPV Codes ### Divisions - 80 - Education and training services ### Codes - 80000000 - Education and training services ## Release History - 9 May 2025 at 09:32 - AwardUpdate - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/d748aa3d-cd1d-4fd2-96e4-ef45b28535d9 - 12 Jan 2024 at 14:30 - AwardUpdate - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/d748aa3d-cd1d-4fd2-96e4-ef45b28535d9 - 29 Nov 2023 at 15:33 - AwardUpdate - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/d748aa3d-cd1d-4fd2-96e4-ef45b28535d9 - 9 Sep 2022 at 12:31 - AwardUpdate - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/d748aa3d-cd1d-4fd2-96e4-ef45b28535d9 - 8 Sep 2022 at 14:59 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/d748aa3d-cd1d-4fd2-96e4-ef45b28535d9 ## Documents - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/d748aa3d-cd1d-4fd2-96e4-ef45b28535d9 8th September 2022 - Awarded contract notice on Contracts Finder - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/e0466e20-714d-4229-9bb1-a17fee9867d9 n/a - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/0be8db38-cbeb-4792-9efe-dc77c273d91b n/a - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/6a193aa0-fbc4-47bc-ba33-b7761889d641 n/a - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/0d327810-5c5f-493d-8a14-6d5929c5956c n/a ## Provenance This Markdown file is an alternate public rendering of the D3 Tenders contract record. The canonical page is https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-2de04597-171c-4420-bafe-057660229852. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-2de04597-171c-4420-bafe-057660229852.json.