---
title: "Autism Navigation Service"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-0697fa"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-0697fa"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0697fa.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0697fa.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "ESSEX COUNTY COUNCIL"
published: "2026-05-29"
---

# Autism Navigation Service

Buyer: ESSEX COUNTY COUNCIL  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-0697fa

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## Summary

Essex County Council has awarded the Autism Navigation Service (ANS) contract under the Provider Selection Regime (PSR), effective from 1st June 2026 to 31st May 2029. This service, catering to autistic adults in Essex, Thurrock, and Southend, comes with support valued at £750,000 for an initial three-year period, with a potential two-year extension increasing the total value to £1,250,000. The contract, classified under "Community health services" (CPV code 85323000), employs a direct award process within the Health Care Services framework. The procurement method is limited, focusing on services without prior competition, and the procurement stage involved a tender update most recently on 29th May 2026. The buying organisation, Essex County Council, based in Chelmsford, is responsible for facilitating this essential community service.

The Autism Navigation Service provides a significant opportunity for businesses specialising in community health services, particularly those experienced in delivering client-centred autism support. This tender is ideally suited for service providers with a strong track record in advocacy and diagnostic support, showcasing capabilities to manage and enhance service delivery with innovation and integration. The successful engagement can help businesses solidify their positioning within the public service sector, gaining credibility and expertise that may lead to future opportunities. Firms known for quality, value, and social responsibility, who are capable of fostering significant social value outcomes, are particularly well-suited to provide such services and thus benefit from this procurement opportunity.

## Notice

Essex County Council (ECC) are re-commissioning the Autism Navigation Service (ANS) for Autistic adults across Essex, Thurrock, and Southend. The ANS is a unique service that supports adults (18+) seeking a diagnosis, or who already have a diagnosis, of autism. The service provides support rooted in advocacy on a 1:1 basis pre, mid and post-diagnostic assessment. The aim is to help a person to navigate the pathway, and access additional support to overcome issues, preventing needs from escalating. For the avoidance of doubt, this contract is being awarded under CPV Code: 85323000-9, which states "Community health services, but only in respect of community health services which are delivered to individuals". The contract is for a period of three (3) years with the option to extend for a further (2) years, subject to governance. For the avoidance of doubt, the total value of this contract has been calculated using the total five (5) year period. The yearly cost of this service totals PS250,000.00, giving a total cost for the three (3) years of PS750,000.00 and a total cost for the five (5) years of PS1,250,000.00. This is an existing service, with an existing provider.

### Lot Information

Lot 1

Following the conclusion of the internal governance process. Essex County Council is due to award a contract to deliver the Autism Navigation Service (ANS) to the incumbent provider under Direct Award Process C of the Provider Selection Regime. Please note that the award of the contract of this service remains subject to the successful conclusion of the standstill period as detailed within section IV of this notice alongside the full organisational details of the incumbent provider. The ANS provides a range of evidence-based interventions shaped to meet individual needs and requirements for those accessing the Autism diagnostic pathway. Additionally, the service provides ongoing (light touch) support for individuals who may have previously exited the service and /or have had a historic diagnosis of autism. For the avoidance of doubt, this service is essentially a straight rebuy of the current service. This will be procured and commissioned under an initial term of three (3) years with an option to extend for a further two (2) years, therefore resulting in a maximum contractual duration of five (5) years. This contract will officially start on the 1st June 2026, with an expiry date of 31st May 2029, pending the enactment of any optional extension periods. For the avoidance of any doubt, please be advised that if the extension period is enacted, the contract will expire on the 31st May 2031. Following Essex County Council's assessment of the incumbent providers' delivery of the current service against the five key criteria within the Provider Selection Regime (as outlined below), we are satisfied that the incumbent provider is currently delivering the contract to a sufficient standard. Furthermore, our review has also confirmed that ECC are satisfied that the provider will continue to satisfy the proposed criteria to a sufficient standard. As per the 2023 Provider Selection Regime regulations, the five key criteria are as per below alongside the following weightings: 1) Quality and innovation - 35% 2) Value - 20% 3) Integration, collaboration and service sustainability - 15% 4) Improving access, reducing health inequality, and facilitating choice - 20% 5) Social Value - 10% Please be advised that we have allocated separate weightings to each of the five criteria following an assessment of the service delivery. The assessment of the future service has been determined by the methodical review of the incumbent provider's quarterly returns under the contract management process. Regarding the first key criteria (quality and innovation), quality has been given the highest weighting in line with the pervious tender, which is due to the specialist nature of this service. The incumbent provider has successfully met, and in some cases, exceeded their KPI's and delivery targets. Additionally, the incumbent provider has successfully used innovation funding to adapt to emerging demand, which can be evidenced with their peer support groups and family training offer. Regarding the second key criteria (value), the incumbent provider has provided us with case studies that highlight the cost avoidance, which is been achieved by a mix of crisis intervention and reduced escalation. Additionally, the service has not been delivered over budget and represents effective value for money. The commissioner has completed Dunn & Bradstreet checks on the provider, which has confirmed an overall low business risk. Regarding the third key criteria (Integration, collaboration, and sustainability), the incumbent provider has a track record for forging and maintaining relationships with key partners to ensure service delivery. Specifically, the incumbent provider regularly attends MDT meetings, which is required to liaise with clinical diagnostic teams. Additionally, last quarter, the incumbent provider enabled 30 reasonable adjustments to be made during autism assessments. Regarding the fourth key criteria (access, inequalities, and choice), the incumbent provider has consistently increased awareness and access to the service. Specifically, 176 referrals were made for the core service across the previous quarter, which have been made from a variety of sources and vastly surpass their KPI. Additionally, support is offered flexibly through: phone calls, emails, face-to-face or virtual means, which enables support in a way that suits the individual. Going forward, the incumbent provider has all the relevant infrastructure in place to continue to meet this criteria in the future. Regarding the fifth and final key criteria (social value), the incumbent provider has successfully delivered all of their social value commitments for the previous contracts, and in some cases, over delivered. Additionally, the incumbent provider was nominated for a social value award in 2023 because of their social value delivery. Going forward, the incumbent provider has provided assurance that they will continue to meet the required social value commitments as per the unchanged contract terms. It is worth noting that as the total value of the contract will not change, there will be limited scope to boost further social value commitments.

Options: Essex County Council (ECC) have the option to extend this contract by a maximum of 24 months, subject to completion of internal governance.

### Procurement Information

For the avoidance of doubt, this contract is being awarded under the Provider Selection Regime (PSR) and therefore falls outside of the PCR2015 regulations.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/050776-2026 |
| Notice type | Tender Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Limited |
| Procurement method details | Award procedure without prior publication of a call for competition |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | SME |
| All stages | Tender, Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 29 May 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 11 May 2026 |
| Contract period | Not specified |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £1,250,000 |

## Status

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

## 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 |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | TENDRING MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 85 - Health and social work services

### Codes

- 85323000 - Community health services

## Release History

- 29 May 2026 at 11:02 - TenderUpdate - Tender Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/050776-2026
- 13 May 2026 at 14:25 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/044038-2026

## Notice URLs

- http://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-h6vhtk-0697fa. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0697fa.json.