--- title: "Market Event - Community Short Breaks Services for Children and Young People with Disabilities" ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-07852a" canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-07852a" markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-07852a.md" json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-07852a.json" source: "Find A Tender Service" current_stage: "Planning" buyer: "Bedford Borough Council" published: "2026-10-09" --- # Market Event - Community Short Breaks Services for Children and Young People with Disabilities Buyer: Bedford Borough Council Current stage: Planning OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-07852a [View canonical contract page](https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-07852a) [Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-07852a.json) ## Summary Bedford Borough Council plans to recommission community short-break services for children and young people with disabilities across Bedford Borough. The services are intended to provide support and activities for children, young people and their families. The potential scope includes community-based short breaks, activities and support for people with special educational needs and disabilities, holiday and leisure provision, weekend and after-school activities, specialist disability support, and family support and respite activities. The Council is considering the service model, procurement approach, lot structure and framework arrangements, and is seeking provider feedback to help shape the requirements and outcomes. Delivery is across Bedford Borough. This is social work and related service provision, rather than a purchase of goods or construction work. This process is at the planning stage: the Council has announced its intention to recommission the services, but has not issued an invitation to tender. It expects to use a framework arrangement and has indicated one lot. The Council planned an online market engagement event via Teams for 23 October 2026, from 10am to 12pm, to discuss its future vision, proposed model and procurement approach, and gather feedback. Providers were asked to register to attend; event access details were to be sent to those expressing interest the day before. The Council’s expected date for a future notice is 2 November 2026. The stated estimated value is £0. The planned contract period is 1 April 2027 to 31 March 2030, with a possible extension to 31 March 2032. The planned service may suit organisations delivering community-based short breaks, SEND activities and support, holiday or leisure provision, weekend and after-school activities, specialist support for disabled children and young people, or family support and respite. The Council has marked the planned lot as suitable for small and medium-sized businesses and voluntary, community and social enterprises. Providers with relevant delivery experience and the capacity to support children, young people and families across Bedford Borough are likely to find the service scope relevant. The Council is also inviting providers to contribute views on service requirements, outcomes, partnership working and innovation, so organisations interested in shaping the future model can inform its development during market engagement. The procurement is still being prepared; it is not yet an invitation to bid. ## Notice Bedford Borough Council is inviting providers to attend our upcoming Market Engagement Event for the recommissioning of Community Short Break Services for Children and Young People with Disabilities. Date: 23 October 2026 Time: 10am -12pm Venue: on-line via Teams (link to the event will be provided day prior to the event to all providers who expressed interest) Bedford Borough Council is inviting providers to attend our upcoming Market Engagement Event for the recommissioning of Community Short Break Services for Children and Young People with Disabilities. This event provides an opportunity to: * Learn about the Council's future vision for Short Break Services * Understand the proposed service model and procurement approach * Discuss the proposed lot structure and framework arrangements * Share feedback on service requirements and outcomes * Explore opportunities for partnership working and innovation * Help shape the future provision available to children, young people and their families Who Should Attend? We welcome organisations that currently deliver or are interested in delivering: * Community-based short breaks * SEND activities and support * Holiday and leisure provision * Weekend and after-school activities * Specialist support services for children and young people with disabilities * Family support and respite activities Future Procurement The Council is preparing to recommission Community Short Break Services to ensure continued high-quality support for children, young people and families across Bedford Borough. Provider feedback gathered during market engagement will help inform the final service specification and procurement documentation To attend the event and receive further information, please register via Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/bedford-borough-short-breaks-market-engagement-tickets-2003193097479?aff=oddtdtcreator ### Planning Information To attend the event and receive further information, please register via Eventbrite by clicking on the link below: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/bedford-borough-short-breaks-market-engagement-tickets-2003193097479?aff=oddtdtcreator ## Key Details | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication source | Find A Tender Service | | Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/095840-2026 | | Notice type | UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice | | Procurement type | Framework | | 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 | 9 Oct 2026 | | Submission deadline | Not specified | | Future notice date | 2 Nov 2026 | | Award date | Not specified | | Contract period | 1 Apr 2027 - 31 Mar 2030 | | 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 | Planning | | Lots status | Planning | | Awards status | Not specified | | Contracts status | Not specified | ## Buyer | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Main buyer | Bedford Borough Council | | Locality | BEDFORD | | Postcode area | Milton Keynes | | Postcode | MK42 9AP | | Country | England | | ITL 1 | TLH East (England) | | ITL 2 | TLH2 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | | ITL 3 | TLH24 Bedford | | Local authority | Bedford | | Electoral ward | Cauldwell | | Westminster constituency | Bedford | | Delivery location | TLH East (England) | ## CPV Codes ### Divisions - 85 - Health and social work services ### Codes - 85300000 - Social work and related services ## Release History - 9 Oct 2026 at 17:07 - Planning - UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/095840-2026 ## Documents - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/095840-2026 9th October 2026 - Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender ## Notice URLs - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/bedford-borough-short-breaks-market-engagement-tickets-2003193097479?aff=oddtdtcreator - 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-07852a. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-07852a.json.