--- title: "NHS England South West - Specialist Counselling to Reduce Health Inequalities and a Befriending Service for Women who have experienced Sexual Violence in Avon and Somerset" ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-0493b9" canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-0493b9" markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0493b9.md" json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0493b9.json" source: "Find A Tender Service" current_stage: "Planning" buyer: "NHS ENGLAND" published: "2024-08-23" --- # NHS England South West - Specialist Counselling to Reduce Health Inequalities and a Befriending Service for Women who have experienced Sexual Violence in Avon and Somerset Buyer: NHS ENGLAND Current stage: Planning OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-0493b9 [View canonical contract page](https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-0493b9) [Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0493b9.json) ## Summary NHS England South West is in the planning stage for a public procurement process aimed at commissioning specialist counselling services to address health inequalities and a befriending service for women who have experienced sexual violence in the areas of Avon and Somerset. This tender, valued at £440,775, falls under the category of rehabilitation services. The contract will commence on 1st April 2025 and will expire on 30th September 2029. Key decision-makers include the Managing Director of System Commissioning Development and the Director of Commissioning Finance. Interested providers must complete a questionnaire by midnight on Friday, 6th September to express their interest. This process is managed under the Provider Selection Regime as per the Health Care Services Regulations 2023. This tender offers an excellent opportunity for businesses experienced in providing mental health and sexual violence support services, particularly those with a track record in managing health inequalities among refugees, asylum seekers, and Deaf women. Companies that can offer trauma counselling and a comprehensive befriending service to women aged 18 and over, and have established networks in Avon and Somerset, are well-suited to compete. Providers must be registered with relevant bodies such as the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and be capable of mobilising services by the contract start date. This initiative not only enhances the service provider's portfolio but also drives significant social impact by improving health outcomes for vulnerable groups. ## Notice This notice is placed to set out NHS England South West's (the Commissioner's) intention to follow the Most Suitable Provider Process. NHS England South West is commissioning specialist counselling services to address health inequalities, specifically for refugees, asylum seekers and Deaf women, and the provision of a 'Befriending' service, for women who have experienced sexual violence. This provision is for the area of Avon and Somerset, to continue the work of the 'Avon and Somerset Enhanced Mental Health Pathfinder' which has been running since 2022. The intention is to move from 'proof of concept' stage to an ongoing model of delivery based on proven outcomes. The Commissioner, is seeking a provider/s who are suitable and capable to continue the delivery of this work. Scope: Specialist 'health inequalities' counselling service for women, specifically refugees, asylum-seekers, and Deaf women. Scope: The Befriending service to provide isolated women with complex mental health needs with a befriender. The services will be for women aged 18 and over. The contract will commence on 1st April 2025. The contract will expire on 30th September 2029. Those delivering the services must be qualified and registered with the relevant bodies, such as the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP). The provider must have experience of delivering services within the sexual violence support services pathway within Avon and Somerset, and have established links and networks to enable collaborative working and integrated delivery. The Provider must be able to mobilise by the contract start date. Services will be contracted using the latest version of the NHS Standard Contract. This exercise is being carried out by NHS South, Central and West Commissioning Support Unit (SCW) on behalf of the Commissioner. ### Lot Information Lot 1 This notice is placed to set out NHS England South West's (the Commissioner's) intention to follow the Most Suitable Provider Process. NHS England South West is commissioning specialist counselling services to address health inequalities, specifically for refugees, asylum seekers and Deaf women, and the provision of a 'Befriending' service, for women who have experienced sexual violence. This provision is for the area of Avon and Somerset, to continue the work of the 'Avon and Somerset Enhanced Mental Health Pathfinder' which has been running since 2022. The intention is to move from 'proof of concept' stage to an ongoing model of delivery based on proven outcomes. The Commissioner, is seeking a provider/s who are suitable and capable to continue the delivery of this work. Scope: Specialist 'health inequalities' counselling service for women, specifically refugees, asylum-seekers, and Deaf women. The service for refugee and asylum-seeking women will offer trauma counselling to a minimum of 12 women per quarter. This service should sit within a broader provision, accessing funding from a range of sources to maximise impact and effectiveness. The service for Deaf women will offer trauma counselling to a minimum of 10 women per quarter. Access to the service will be enabled through the use of sign-supported English and/or lip reading or seen by a counsellor who is fluent in British Sign Language (BSL). Scope: The Befriending service to provide isolated women with complex mental health needs with a befriender. The service will recruit, train, match and supervise volunteer befrienders to support each woman's recovery by helping them to improve their mental health and wellbeing, get out and about, engage in community activities, build safe, healthy relationships to reduce re-victimisation, increase independence, confidence and self-esteem and reduce reliance on statutory services. It should help women to overcome social isolation, and therefore have a positive impact on mental ill health. The Befriending Service will offer a minimum of 20 'partnerships' per quarter. The services will be for women aged 18 and over. The contract will commence on 1st April 2025. The contract will expire on 30th September 2029. Additional information: The Specification can be found in Atamis (see details below for access), along with a Most Suitable Provider Questionnaire which requires completion in order to express interest. Providers who believe they are suitable to deliver these services and express an interest will be assessed against the basic selection criteria and key criteria under the Provider Selection Regime (PSR). The basic criteria includes: - The provider's ability to pursue a particular activity - Economic and financial standing - Technical and professional ability The key criteria includes: - Quality and innovation (25%) - Value (5%) - Integration, collaboration and service sustainability (30%) - Improving access, reducing health inequalities and facilitating choice (30%) - Social value (10%) The percentages illustrate the relative importance of these criteria associated with the delivery of these services. ## Key Details | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication source | Find A Tender Service | | Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/027123-2024 | | Notice type | Planning Notice | | Procurement type | Standard | | Procurement category | Services | | Procurement method | Not Specified | | Procurement method details | Not specified | | Tender suitability | Not specified | | Awardee scale | Not specified | | All stages | Planning | ## Dates | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication date | 23 Aug 2024 | | Submission deadline | Not specified | | Future notice date | 31 Oct 2024 | | Award date | Not specified | | Contract period | Not specified | | Recurrence | Not specified | ## Values | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender value | £440,775 | | Lots value | Not specified | | Awards value | Not specified | | Contracts value | Not specified | ## Status | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender status | Planned | | Lots status | Planned | | Awards status | Not specified | | Contracts status | Not specified | ## Buyer | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Main buyer | NHS ENGLAND | | Locality | LONDON | | Post town | South East London | | Postcode | SE1 8UG | | Country | England | | ITL 1 | TLI London | | ITL 2 | TLI4 Inner London - East | | ITL 3 | TLI45 Lambeth | | Local authority | Lambeth | | Electoral ward | Waterloo & South Bank | | Westminster constituency | Vauxhall and Camberwell Green | | Delivery location | TLK1 Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Bristol/Bath area, TLK2 Dorset and Somerset | ## CPV Codes ### Divisions - 85 - Health and social work services ### Codes - 85312500 - Rehabilitation services ## Release History - 23 Aug 2024 at 14:18 - Planning - Planning Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/027123-2024 ## Notice URLs - https://health-family.force.com/s/Welcome - https://www.england.nhs.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-h6vhtk-0493b9. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0493b9.json.