--- title: "Provision of Independent Reviewing officer and Foster Carer reviews" ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-043cde" canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-043cde" markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-043cde.md" json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-043cde.json" source: "Find A Tender Service" current_stage: "Tender" buyer: "LONDON BOROUGH OF BRENT" published: "2024-02-26" --- # Provision of Independent Reviewing officer and Foster Carer reviews Buyer: LONDON BOROUGH OF BRENT Current stage: Tender OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-043cde [View canonical contract page](https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-043cde) [Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-043cde.json) ## Summary The London Borough of Brent is seeking suppliers for a tender titled "Provision of Independent Reviewing officer and Foster Carer reviews" in the health and social work services industry category. The procurement stage is currently active, with a tender period ending on March 7, 2024. The tender aims to provide IROs and FCROs to conduct reviews for children looked after, and foster carers in Brent. The market engagement event is scheduled for 8th March 2024, with key responsibilities including chairing reviews, contributing to care plans, and monitoring foster carers to ensure corporate parenting standards are met. This tender by the London Borough of Brent presents an opportunity for providers to offer services related to children looked after and foster care in Brent. Businesses well-suited to compete are those experienced in health and social work services. The contract duration is initially 2 years, with the potential for a further 24-month extension. Interested suppliers must submit electronically before the tender deadline, and further details can be found on the London Tenders portal. The award period is set to begin on May 9, 2024, offering growth prospects for businesses aiming to support vulnerable children and foster carers. ## Notice Supplier Engagement Brent Council wishes to inform providers of its intention to publish a tender for the provision of statutory Children Looked After Reviews (Independent Reviewing Officer) and annual Foster Carer reviews. Prior to publication of the invitation to quote, the Council wishes to engage with suppliers and would like to invite you to a market engagement event where we will provide further information about the opportunity and future intensions for the service. We would also invite any feedback, expertise and experience you wish to share at the event. The event will be held on 8th March 2024 from 3.00pm to 4.30pm, via Microsoft teams. If you wish to attend please express an interest in the opportunity on the London Tenders Portal and send a message advising of your full organisation name, email addresses & the names of the 2 people (maximum) that will be attending the Teams meeting. ### Lot Information Lot 1 A brief overview and background to the opportunity are provided below: Background The Independent Reviewing Officer's (IRO) primary function is to act as a robust counterbalance to the Local Authority, by providing expert and independent quality assurance on the Local Authority's care planning and reviewing process for children and young people looked after (CLA) by Brent. This duty is executed through highlighting when positive outcomes are achieved for the CLA and flagging occasions when it has not been possible to progress a child's care plan. A crucial part of the role is to champion the voice of the child to contribute meaningfully to the co-design of their care plan and to scrutinize action plans against their progress to ensure that the arrangements for the child's current and long-term care are in place. The Foster Carer Reviewing Officer (FCRO) will conduct reviews with foster carers once a year, with a view to ascertaining the suitability of the Foster Carer and their capacity of demonstrating competence in meeting the needs of looked after children, in line with the Fostering Regulations and Fostering national minimum standards. Service Overview & Local Context Children Looked After The Service Provider will assist the Brent Reviewing Team by providing IROs to chair and participate in CLA reviews. The primary responsibilities of the IROs will be to incorporate the thoughts and voice of the child in their care plan and review targeted and achievable recommendations as part of the plan to enable positive outcomes. The IROs are also responsible to submit all appropriate documentation, within agreed timeframes and to standard, and hold the Local Authority to account for their performance in light of the legal responsibilities towards the child. Foster Carers The Service Provider will provide FCROs who will be responsible for conducting annual reviews of Foster Carers with an emphasis on monitoring the implementation of Fostering Panel recommendations, highlighting good practice, but also looking at concerns and allegations; addressing practice that falls below expected standards, including non-compliance with agreed plans and practice levels. This will ensure that the Brent CLA receive corporate parenting that is at a good standard. As of 21st February 2024: * There are 298 Brent children and young people Looked After (130 of whom are currently 16 years and older and 49, who are Unaccompanied Asylum Seekers Children). * There are 90 Brent Foster Carers Service Volume The expected Service Volume for the Service Provider will be to provide suitable FCROs/IROs to chair Foster carer reviews (circa 100 yearly) and CLA reviews for children that Brent Council has corporate parenting responsibility for. The majority of CLA reviews covered by the Service Provider will be focusing on the older young people cohort of 16 years plus, with some additional LAC reviews for younger children and young people (circa 330-350 review annually) Contract Length & Budget The contract term will be 2 years with an option to extend by a further 24 months (1+1). ## Key Details | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication source | Find A Tender Service | | Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/006125-2024 | | Notice type | Tender Notice | | Procurement type | Standard | | Procurement category | Services | | Procurement method | Open | | Procurement method details | Open procedure | | Tender suitability | Not specified | | Awardee scale | Not specified | | All stages | Tender | ## Dates | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication date | 26 Feb 2024 | | Submission deadline | 7 Mar 2024 | | Future notice date | Not specified | | Award date | Not specified | | Contract period | Not specified | | Recurrence | Not specified | ## Values | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender value | Not specified | | Lots value | Not specified | | Awards value | Not specified | | Contracts value | Not specified | ## Status | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender status | Active | | Lots status | Active | | Awards status | Not specified | | Contracts status | Not specified | ## Buyer | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Main buyer | LONDON BOROUGH OF BRENT | | Locality | WEMBLEY | | Post town | Harrow | | Postcode | HA9 0FJ | | Country | England | | ITL 1 | TLI London | | ITL 2 | TLI7 Outer London - West and North West | | ITL 3 | TLI72 Brent | | Local authority | Brent | | Electoral ward | Wembley Park | | Westminster constituency | Brent West | | Delivery location | Not specified | ## 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 Feb 2024 at 14:26 - Tender - Tender Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/006125-2024 ## Notice URLs - http://www.brent.gov.uk/ - https://www.londontenders.org/ ## 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-043cde. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-043cde.json.