---
title: "Bidders Information Event: Best Start in Life"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-06eb04"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06eb04"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06eb04.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06eb04.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Planning"
buyer: "Bradford Children & Families Trust"
published: "2026-08-24"
---

# Bidders Information Event: Best Start in Life

Buyer: Bradford Children & Families Trust  
Current stage: Planning  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-06eb04

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[Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06eb04.json)

## Summary

Bradford Children & Families Trust intends to commission services supporting children, young people and families across the Bradford Metropolitan District. The programme is designed to improve outcomes in the early years and help children begin school ready to learn, in line with the Best Start Family Hubs and Healthy Babies guidance. The scope covers two service areas: parenting support; and parent-infant relationships together with perinatal, or parent-infant, mental health support. This is a public-sector health and social care services requirement, including social services, social work and related support. The Trust is wholly owned by Bradford Council and provides children’s social care services through a community interest company structure. The work is intended for delivery across Bradford.

This process is at the planning stage: the Trust has announced an intention to procure and there is no invitation to tender yet. It expects to use a light-touch services procedure for an above-threshold requirement. The planned contract is divided into two lots: Parenting Support, and Parent-Infant Relationships and Perinatal Mental Health. The estimated value is £6,139,800 excluding VAT, or £7,367,760 including VAT. The initial contract period is expected to run from 1 April 2027 to 31 March 2029, with a possible extension or renewal to 31 March 2033. Following market engagement on 27 July 2026, the Trust plans an online bidders’ information event on 14 September 2026, from 10:30 to 11:30, via Microsoft Teams. Expressions of interest for that event are requested through the EU Supply portal.

The planned commissioning will suit organisations delivering practical family support, parenting programmes, early-years services, parent-infant relationship work and perinatal mental health support. Relevant providers are likely to include children’s social care specialists, health and social work organisations, family support charities, community interest companies and other voluntary, community or social enterprises. The buyer has indicated that both small and medium-sized enterprises and voluntary, community and social enterprises are suitable for the requirement. Businesses should prepare evidence of their ability to support children and families across Bradford, deliver high-quality and innovative services, and contribute to improved early-years outcomes. Organisations with complementary expertise may wish to consider collaboration across the two service areas when the procurement reaches the market.

## Notice

As set out in the notice published on 3 July 2026, Bradford Children and Families Trust (BCFT) has been established as a community interest company limited by guarantee and is wholly owned by Bradford Council. The Trust provides a long-term, sustainable platform to drive improved performance and deliver high-quality, innovative social care services for children, young people, and families across the Bradford Metropolitan District. In 2025, the Government announced the Giving Every Child the Best Start in Life programme, building on the previous Family Hubs Start for Life programme. The strategy highlights the importance of supporting children and families throughout the early years, helping to lay the foundations for future success. This includes a commitment to ensuring that 75% of children achieve a Good Level of Development (GLD) in the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile assessment by 2028 and begin school ready to learn. The Best Start Family Hubs and Healthy Babies: Guidance for Local Authorities informs the core funded services that are within the scope of this commissioning activity. These services will be commissioned across the following two lots: * Lot 1: Parenting Support * Lot 2: Parent-Infant Relationships and Perinatal (Parent-Infant) Mental Health. Feedback from the market engagement event held on 27 July 2026 has helped inform our approach. A further Bidders Information Event will be held online as follows: Date: Monday 14 September 2026 Time: 10:30am to 11:30am Format: Microsoft Teams. To express an interest in attending, please register for the event via the EU Supply portal.

### Planning Information

https://uk.eu-supply.com/app/rfq/rwlentrance_s.asp?PID=108523&TID=100113583&B=

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/080581-2026 |
| Notice type | UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Not Specified |
| Procurement method details | Not specified |
| Tender suitability | SME, VCSE |
| Awardee scale | Not specified |
| All stages | Planning |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 24 Aug 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Award date | Not specified |
| Contract period | 1 Apr 2027 - 31 Mar 2029 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £6,139,800 |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Planning |
| Lots status | Planning |
| Awards status | Not specified |
| Contracts status | Not specified |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | Bradford Children & Families Trust |
| Locality | BRADFORD |
| Postcode area | Bradford |
| Postcode | BD5 0QL |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLE Yorkshire and The Humber |
| ITL 2 | TLE4 West Yorkshire |
| ITL 3 | TLE41 Bradford |
| Local authority | Bradford |
| Electoral ward | City |
| Westminster constituency | Bradford West |
| Delivery location | TLE Yorkshire and The Humber |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 85 - Health and social work services

### Codes

- 85000000 - Health and social work services
- 85300000 - Social work and related services
- 85310000 - Social work services
- 85320000 - Social services

## Release History

- 24 Aug 2026 at 18:01 - Planning - UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/080581-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/080581-2026
  24th August 2026 - Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- https://uk.eu-supply.com/app/rfq/rwlentrance_s.asp?PID=108523&TID=100113583&B=
- 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-06eb04. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06eb04.json.