---
title: "Provision of a Health and Social Care Communication Support Service in Northern Ireland, for People who are Deaf, deafblind and Hard of Hearing"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-036b1a"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-036b1a"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-036b1a.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-036b1a.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "PROCUREMENT AND LOGISTICS SERVICE"
published: "2023-03-31"
---

# Provision of a Health and Social Care Communication Support Service in Northern Ireland, for People who are Deaf, deafblind and Hard of Hearing

Buyer: PROCUREMENT AND LOGISTICS SERVICE  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-036b1a

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## Summary

The Department of Health, Northern Ireland, through the Procurement and Logistics Service, has completed a tender process for the provision of a Health and Social Care Communication Support Service in Northern Ireland. The service aims to facilitate communication between Deaf, deafblind, and hard of hearing individuals and hearing people. The procurement focused on translation services under the services category. The main contracting authority is based in Belfast, UK. The procurement method used was an open procedure, with the award already granted to SIGN LANGUAGE INTERACTIONS LIMITED and Hands That Talk. The contract was signed on 31st March 2023, with a total value of £5,000,000.

This tender presents significant business growth opportunities for companies specializing in language interpretation services, particularly those experienced in providing support to individuals with hearing impairments. Businesses offering British Sign Language (BSL) interpreters, translators, and other communication services are well-suited to compete. The tender process included specific services like face-to-face sign language interpreters, remote video relay interpreting, and note-takers, catering to diverse language needs. The Procurement and Logistics Service, acting as the buyer, has outlined a clear expectation for the service provider to accommodate the communication requirements of all service users, including ethnic minorities with distinct language needs.

## Notice

The Department of Health, Northern Ireland, plan to appoint a single provider to deliver a Communication Support Services to allow communication between Deaf, deafblind and Hard of Hearing people and hearing people, in attendance, or via video conferencing settings. The Provider shall provide the following Services: * BSL/ISL Sign Language Interpreters (Face to Face) * BSL/ISL Sign Language Interpreters (Remote: Video Relay Interpreting and Video Interpretation) * BSL/ISL Deaf Intralingual Interpreters (Relay Interpreters) * BSL/ISL Translators * Interpreters for deafblind people * Lip speakers * Note takers * Speech to Text Reporting Given the growing presence of ethnic minorities with different language needs there is an expectation that the provider will provide a service that responds to the specific needs of all Service Users, including language provision for those for whom BSL or ISL is not a native language.

### Lot Information

Lot 1

The Department of Health, Northern Ireland, plan to appoint a single provider to deliver a Communication Support Services to allow communication between Deaf, deafblind and Hard of Hearing people and hearing people, in attendance, or via video conferencing settings. The Provider shall provide the following Services: * BSL/ISL Sign Language Interpreters (Face to Face) * BSL/ISL Sign Language Interpreters (Remote: Video Relay Interpreting and Video Interpretation) * BSL/ISL Deaf Intralingual Interpreters (Relay Interpreters) * BSL/ISL Translators * Interpreters for deafblind people * Lip speakers * Note takers * Speech to Text Reporting Given the growing presence of ethnic minorities with different language needs there is an expectation that the provider will provide a service that responds to the specific needs of all Service Users, including language provision for those for whom BSL or ISL is not a native language. Additional information: The Service is Demand led so the total Value of the Contract may increase in line with actual demand

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/009420-2023 |
| Notice type | Tender Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Open |
| Procurement method details | Open procedure |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | SME |
| All stages | Tender, Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 31 Mar 2023 |
| Submission deadline | 26 Oct 2022 |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 30 Mar 2023 |
| Contract period | Not specified |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £5,000,000 |
| Lots value | £5,000,000 |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £5,000,000 |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Complete |
| Lots status | Active |
| Awards status | Active |
| Contracts status | Active |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | PROCUREMENT AND LOGISTICS SERVICE |
| Locality | BELFAST |
| Post town | Northern Ireland |
| Postcode | BT12 6HU |
| Country | Northern Ireland |
| ITL 1 | TLN Northern Ireland |
| ITL 2 | TLN0 Northern Ireland |
| ITL 3 | TLN06 Belfast |
| Local authority | Belfast |
| Electoral ward | Blackstaff |
| Westminster constituency | Belfast South and Mid Down |
| Delivery location | TLN Northern Ireland |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 2 |
| Supplier names | HANDS THAT TALK; SIGN LANGUAGE INTERACTIONS |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 79 - Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security

### Codes

- 79530000 - Translation services
- 79540000 - Interpretation services

## Release History

- 31 Mar 2023 at 09:59 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/009420-2023
- 23 Sep 2022 at 14:47 - Tender - Tender Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/026738-2022

## Notice URLs

- http://handsthattalk.co.uk/site/
- https://etendersni.gov.uk/epps
- https://etendersni.gov.uk/epps/home.do
- https://online.hscni.net/

## 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-h6vhtk-036b1a. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-036b1a.json.