--- title: "Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) - Resource and Funding Maximisation Market Engagement" ocid: "ocds-b5fd17-e3318e98-2d94-4db0-aed8-027022e06097" canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-e3318e98-2d94-4db0-aed8-027022e06097" markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-e3318e98-2d94-4db0-aed8-027022e06097.md" json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-e3318e98-2d94-4db0-aed8-027022e06097.json" source: "Contracts Finder" current_stage: "Planning" buyer: "ESSEX COUNTY COUNCIL" published: "2024-12-20" --- # Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) - Resource and Funding Maximisation Market Engagement Buyer: ESSEX COUNTY COUNCIL Current stage: Planning OCID: ocds-b5fd17-e3318e98-2d94-4db0-aed8-027022e06097 [View canonical contract page](https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-e3318e98-2d94-4db0-aed8-027022e06097) [Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-e3318e98-2d94-4db0-aed8-027022e06097.json) ## Summary Essex County Council is currently in the planning stage of a procurement process titled "Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) - Resource and Funding Maximisation Market Engagement." This project, classified under research and development services and related consultancy services (CPV 73000000), business and management consultancy (CPV 79400000), and community facility support services (CPV 98133100), seeks to establish a robust support system for the VCS. Located in England, the project aims to enhance the capabilities of the VCS through strategic partnerships and funding maximisation efforts. The soft market test will conclude on 20th January 2025, with a submission deadline of 12:00. Prospective participants must register on the ProContract portal to access the soft market testing questionnaire. This tender offers significant business growth opportunities for organisations specialising in business consultancy, financial management, and community engagement. Firms with expertise in digital business resources, community participation strategies, and funding acquisition will find this project particularly advantageous. Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and those from the voluntary, community, and social enterprise (VCSE) sector are encouraged to participate, aligning with the Council's objective of fostering a thriving VCS ecosystem. With a project value of £1,000,000, this initiative provides an attractive avenue for businesses to expand their service offerings and contribute to community development in Essex. ## Notice Further to the previous FTS PIN (ref. no: 2024/S 000-037463), which was published on 20th November 2024 regarding this forthcoming procurement opportunity, Essex County Council ("the Council") would like to invite prospective providers to engage in a soft market test as part of the market engagement for this project. The soft market test has been designed to establish the potential level of interest from organisations to deliver a Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) - Resource and Funding Maximisation service and to invite feedback on the proposed structure of this service to inform the Council's commissioning intentions. Pending a review of the market feedback for this soft market test, the Council intends to commission a VCS Resource and Funding Maximisation Service offer which will work collaboratively with: * A VCS Universal Standard Support Offer, providing digital business, compliance and learning resources. * A VCS Community Participation partner, working strategically to develop a culture of participation across Essex and: * Geographically based resources offering targeted and bespoke support across a range of outcomes. The primary scope of the VCS Resource and Funding Maximisation service is predicated upon investing in a partner to enable a more strategic approach to maximising the funding and resources for the VCS. This partner will leverage financial and non-financial resources, strengthen the VCS capacity to secure funding, and support a strategic approach to distributing funding and non-financial resources. For the avoidance of any further doubt, please note that the Council will finalise the scope of this procurement opportunity following the conclusion of the market engagement phase of this project. Therefore, the inclusion of any proposed scope of this procurement alongside any dates and budgetary information for the forthcoming procurement is provided for indicative purposes only. The Council reserves the right to amend this information following confirmation of the procurement timetable for this project. Full details of the structure of this procurement and associated timetable will be detailed within the corresponding Contract Notice in due course. Further details of the Council's current commissioning intentions for this service and a copy of the online soft market test questionnaire can be accessed via the Council's e-tendering portal: https://procontract.due-north.com/ Please note that you will need to complete the registration process to secure a user account to access the soft market test questionnaire on ProContract. However, please be advised that the registration process is free of charge and provides access to all the current and forthcoming procurement opportunities for Essex County Council alongside several other public sector organisations. Please note that the deadline for the soft market test responses will be Monday 20th January 2025 at 12:00 and all responses must be submitted via ProContract. Additional information: For the avoidance of any further doubt, please note that the stated closing date in Section 1: Summary Information within this notice, relates to the submission deadline for interested parties to respond to the soft market test. The Council will confirm the relevant tender submission deadline for the forthcoming procurement in the respective contract notice in due course. ## Key Details | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication source | Contracts Finder | | Latest notice | https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/4107f6af-2e74-4b6f-bdfa-c71e5ed2af5a | | 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 | 20 Dec 2024 | | Submission deadline | Not specified | | Future notice date | 20 Jan 2025 | | Award date | Not specified | | Contract period | Not specified | | Recurrence | Not specified | ## Values | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender value | £1,000,000 | | 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 | ESSEX COUNTY COUNCIL | | Locality | CHELMSFORD | | Post town | Chelmsford | | Postcode | CM1 1QH | | Country | England | | ITL 1 | TLH East (England) | | ITL 2 | TLH3 Essex | | ITL 3 | TLH36 Heart of Essex | | Local authority | Chelmsford | | Electoral ward | Moulsham and Central | | Westminster constituency | Chelmsford | | 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 - 73 - Research and development services and related consultancy services - 79 - Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security - 98 - Other community, social and personal services ### Codes - 73000000 - Research and development services and related consultancy services - 79400000 - Business and management consultancy and related services - 98133100 - Civic betterment and community facility support services ## Release History - 20 Dec 2024 at 10:08 - Planning - Market Engagement Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/4107f6af-2e74-4b6f-bdfa-c71e5ed2af5a - 20 Nov 2024 at 10:06 - Planning - Market Engagement Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/5a352166-02ed-4b29-bf27-ce979386cbc2 ## Documents - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/4107f6af-2e74-4b6f-bdfa-c71e5ed2af5a 20th December 2024 - Early engagement notice on Contracts Finder - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/5a352166-02ed-4b29-bf27-ce979386cbc2 20th November 2024 - Early engagement notice on Contracts Finder ## Notice URLs - https://procontract.due-north.com/ - https://www.essex.gov.uk/ ## 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-e3318e98-2d94-4db0-aed8-027022e06097. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-e3318e98-2d94-4db0-aed8-027022e06097.json.