---
title: "ASC0269 - Soft Market Testing - 1001 Critical Days Early Speech and Language Development"
ocid: "ocds-b5fd17-a23f1ad5-cecc-4c16-9c7c-0ad1c4d731e0"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-a23f1ad5-cecc-4c16-9c7c-0ad1c4d731e0"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-a23f1ad5-cecc-4c16-9c7c-0ad1c4d731e0.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-a23f1ad5-cecc-4c16-9c7c-0ad1c4d731e0.json"
source: "Contracts Finder"
current_stage: "Planning"
buyer: "LEICESTER CITY COUNCIL"
published: "2021-10-26"
---

# ASC0269 - Soft Market Testing - 1001 Critical Days Early Speech and Language Development

Buyer: LEICESTER CITY COUNCIL  
Current stage: Planning  
OCID: ocds-b5fd17-a23f1ad5-cecc-4c16-9c7c-0ad1c4d731e0

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## Summary

Leicester City Council is currently in the planning stage of a procurement process titled "ASC0269 - Soft Market Testing - 1001 Critical Days Early Speech and Language Development." This initiative falls under the health and social work services category and is aimed at developing a new service to support early speech and language growth. The engagement end date for this soft market testing is set for 23 November 2021, and the total estimated contract value is £140,000 over a three-year period. The council intends to seek tenders by January 2022, with the new contract scheduled to commence on 1 July 2022.

This tender presents significant opportunities for businesses focused on early childhood development, particularly those specialising in speech and language services. Organisations may bid for either or both of the two service lots: one targeting perinatal mental health support and another addressing multilingual families. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as well as voluntary, community, and social enterprises (VCSEs) are encouraged to participate, as their expertise will be invaluable in delivering this initiative effectively. Engaging in this market testing will allow prospective providers to influence the service model and increase their chances of success in the forthcoming tender process.

## Notice

THIS IS NOT A CALL FOR COMPETITION Leicester City Council intends to commission a new service to support early speech and language development building upon the evidence base of the importance of the first 1001 critical days (from pre-birth to 2 years), and the recently launched Speech, Language and Communication (SLC) Strategy 2021-2025. https://www.leicester.gov.uk/your-council/policies-plans-and-strategies/social-care-and-education/speech-language-and-communication-slc-strategy-2021-2025/ The contract value is estimated to be PS140,000 in total over three years contract period, with the overarching aim of building confidence within families to develop ways to support their children's early language development. There will be two lots to this service: Lot 1 will focus on supporting women with perinatal mental health needs (PS50,000 in total over three years contract period); and Lot 2 will focus on supporting families where there is more than one language spoken at home, usually where English is not the primary language (PS90,000 in total over three years contract period). Potential providers may be interested in bidding for either Lot 1 or Lot 2 or both Lot 1 and Lot 2. It is anticipated that tenders for the commissioning arrangement would be sought in January 2022 to enable new contract to begin from 1st July 2022. Commissioners would like to undertake a soft market test. This gives potential providers and other stakeholders the opportunity to express their interests and feed in their views about the potential service model and service definitions. The commissioners will use the information to appraise options and further develop the specification. To participate in this Soft Market Testing, organisations that may be interested, must complete a Soft Market Test questionnaire. The questionnaire can be found by copying and pasting the following web link into your web browser: https://procontract.due-north.com/Advert?advertId=365a5ee7-5b36-ec11-810e-005056b64545&fromAdvertEvent=True The completed questionnaire must be returned electronically by email before or no later than 14:00 hours on 23 November 2021 to the email address procurement-asc@leicester.gov.uk with the subject heading: Completed SMT Q - 1001'.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Contracts Finder |
| Latest notice | https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/01e91776-d7c5-421c-8685-4c95687eeff4 |
| Notice type | Market Engagement Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Not specified |
| Procurement method | Not Specified |
| Procurement method details | Not specified |
| Tender suitability | SME, VCSE |
| Awardee scale | Not specified |
| All stages | Planning |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 26 Oct 2021 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | 23 Nov 2021 |
| Award date | Not specified |
| Contract period | Not specified |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £140,000 |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Planning |
| Lots status | Not specified |
| Awards status | Not specified |
| Contracts status | Not specified |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | LEICESTER CITY COUNCIL |
| Locality | LEICESTER |
| Post town | Leicester |
| Postcode | LE1 1FZ |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLF East Midlands (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLF2 Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire |
| ITL 3 | TLF21 Leicester |
| Local authority | Leicester |
| Electoral ward | Castle |
| Westminster constituency | Leicester South |
| Delivery location | TLC North East (England), TLD North West (England), TLF East Midlands (England), TLG West Midlands (England), TLH East (England), TLJ South East (England), TLK South West (England) |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 85 - Health and social work services
- 98 - Other community, social and personal services

### Codes

- 85000000 - Health and social work services
- 98000000 - Other community, social and personal services

## Release History

- 26 Oct 2021 at 13:48 - Planning - Market Engagement Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/01e91776-d7c5-421c-8685-4c95687eeff4

## Documents

- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/01e91776-d7c5-421c-8685-4c95687eeff4
  26th October 2021 - Early engagement notice on Contracts Finder
- https://procontract.due-north.com/Advert?advertId=365a5ee7-5b36-ec11-810e-005056b64545&fromAdvertEvent=True
  Advert

## Notice URLs

- http://www.leicester.gov.uk
- https://www.leicester.gov.uk/your-council/policies-plans-and-strategies/social-care-and-education/speech-language-and-communication-slc-strategy-2021-2025/

## Provenance

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