---
title: "F002PA - Education Healthcare Plan Writing"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-05d40e"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-05d40e"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-05d40e.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-05d40e.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Tender"
buyer: "ESSEX COUNTY COUNCIL"
published: "2026-04-28"
---

# F002PA - Education Healthcare Plan Writing

Buyer: ESSEX COUNTY COUNCIL  
Current stage: Tender  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-05d40e

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## Summary

Essex County Council is currently in the tender stage for the procurement titled "F002PA - Education Healthcare Plan Writing", aimed at the development of Education Healthcare Plans (EHCPs) within the special education services category. Located in Chelmsford, Essex, UK, this opportunity is essential to fulfilling the Council's statutory duties under the Children and Families Act 2014. The procurement process will be conducted electronically through an open procedure, inviting suitable providers to submit their tenders until 28 May 2026. The anticipated award will be finalised by 29 June 2026, with contract execution starting from 3 August 2026 and lasting for three years, potentially encompassing annual break clauses. The Council's budget for this service, inclusive of VAT, is £900,000.

This tender presents significant opportunities for businesses specialising in special education services, particularly those with expertise in drafting EHCPs compliant with the SEN Code of Practice. The procurement is designed to accommodate the fluctuating demand for EHCPs throughout the academic year, thus requiring flexibility and the ability to scale resources. SMEs and VCSEs are encouraged to apply, especially those experienced in commissioning trained staff to deliver tailored education, health, and care plans for young people with special educational needs and disabilities. This contract could foster business growth through increased visibility, Enhanced service offerings in the education sector, and foster partnerships with local government entities. Interested organisations should possess comprehensive knowledge of regional educational processes, ensuring adherence to regulations such as data protection and safeguarding protocols.

## Notice

Essex County Council ("the Council") is seeking to commission an external provider to prepare Education Healthcare Plans (EHCP) to enable the Council to fulfil its statutory duties under the Children and Families Act 2014 and the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Code of Practice. Please be advised that whilst the Council is working towards a model where EHCPs are written internally, this procurement is also designed to facilitate the Council's ability to meet the demand for EHCPs during peak times in the academic year where the number of plans (new and amendments) exceed the internal capacity. Therefore, there is no guarantee of numbers under this contract and the resource needs to be flexible to meet demand. However, please note that further details regarding the current and projected demand for EHCPs is provided within the service specification which has been published as part of the tender documents. The successful bidder will be required to prepare EHCPs for children and young people (0-25) with significant special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). The EHCPs will detail the young person's: * Needs across education, health, and care * The young person's support requirements and desired outcomes The EHCPs will ensure that eligible children and young people receive coordinated, tailored support and help to secure resources for specialist provision. Please be advised that as a minimum, the EHCPs must be prepared in line with the following principles: * Fully comply with the Essex process for initiating assessments, undertaking assessments and drafting EHCPs (see: http://www.essexlocaloffer.org.uk/) * Write EHCPs for individual children and young people using information contained in a variety of report formats * EHCPs must comply with the requirements within the SEN Code of Practice https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/398815/SEND_Code_of_Practice_January_2015.pdf * Account needs to be taken of any guidance provided by the Department for Education or Essex County Council * Appoint and manage appropriately experienced and qualified staff to write the EHCPs * Ensure that there is sufficiency of trained staff to meet and deliver to Local Authority requirements and that there will be a continuous service delivery. * Ensure strict compliance with the Data Protection Act 1998 and all updates. Please be advised that further details regarding the Council's requirements for this service will be accessible from the dedicated specification which will be published on the Council's e-tendering platform, ProContract which can be accessed via: https://procontract.due-north.com/ Please register for a user account to gain access to the tender documentation for this procurement opportunity, noting that the Council envisages that this opportunity will be published on Tuesday 28 April 2026. Explanatory notes: The contracting authority is Essex County Council and any Successor Body meaning one or more entities which assumes any of the Council's functions (as applicable) as a result of Local Government Reform (LGR). Such successor body or bodies may be, without limitation, a local authority, a combined authority, a combined county authority, a strategic authority or any other status determined pursuant to the Devolution and LGR Legislation. In addition, please note that the budgetary information within this notice is stated inclusive of VAT due to the requirements of the form and the total budget for this service is PS900,000. Similarly, please be advised that the contract for this service includes annual break clauses and the requirements are being commissioned under a 1+1+1 year term. Due to the constraints of the fields within this notice, the stated three (3) year contract duration represents the maximum contract term for this service.

### Planning Information

Essex County Council are working towards a model where EHCPs are written internally, however there are peak times in the academic year where the number of plans (new and amendments) exceed the internal capacity. There is therefore no guarantee of numbers under this contract and the resource needs to be flexible to meet demand.
We are intending to run a series of drop in market engagement sessions with suitably experienced organisations to support our requirement moving forward.
We would like to hear from organisations interested in this requirement and who are able to demonstrate the following relevant experience:
• Understand the Essex process for initiating assessments, undertaking assessments and drafting EHCPs http://www.essexlocaloffer.org.uk/
• Write EHCPs for individual children and young people using information contained in a variety of report formats
• EHCPs must comply with the requirements within the SEN Code of Practice https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/398815/SEND_Code_of_Practice_January_2015.pdf
• Account needs to be taken of any guidance provided by the Department for Education or Essex County Council
• Appoint and manage appropriately experienced and qualified staff to write the EHCPs
• Ensure that there is sufficiency of trained staff to meet and deliver to Local Authority requirements and that there will be a continuous service delivery.
• Ensure strict compliance with the Data Protection Act 1998 and all updates.
Please send your expression of interest to harvey.neary@essex.gov.uk who will share a microsoft forms to be complete in time for the drop in sessions

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/038649-2026 |
| Notice type | UK4 - Tender Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Open |
| Procurement method details | Open procedure |
| Tender suitability | SME, VCSE |
| Awardee scale | Not specified |
| All stages | Planning, Tender |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 28 Apr 2026 |
| Submission deadline | 28 May 2026 |
| Future notice date | 26 Nov 2025 |
| Award date | Not specified |
| Contract period | 2 Aug 2026 - 2 Aug 2029 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £960,000 |
| Lots value | £900,000 |
| 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 | 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 | TLH3 Essex |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 80 - Education and training services

### Codes

- 80340000 - Special education services

## Release History

- 28 Apr 2026 at 13:27 - Tender - UK4 - Tender Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/038649-2026
- 12 Nov 2025 at 10:59 - PlanningUpdate - UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/073072-2025
- 27 Oct 2025 at 11:47 - Planning - UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/068501-2025

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/038649-2026
  28th April 2026 - Tender notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/073072-2025
  12th November 2025 - Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/068501-2025
  27th October 2025 - Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- http://www.essexlocaloffer.org.uk/
- https://procontract.due-north.com/
- https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/398815/SEND_Code_of_Practice_January_2015.pdf
- https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents

## 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-05d40e. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-05d40e.json.