--- title: "Northamptonshire Children's Trust Pre-Market Engagement Event for the Reopening of the Independent Fostering Arrangements and Children's Homes DPS" ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-07885f" canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-07885f" markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-07885f.md" json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-07885f.json" source: "Find A Tender Service" current_stage: "Planning" buyer: "Northamptonshire Children's Trust" published: "2026-10-15" --- # Northamptonshire Children's Trust Pre-Market Engagement Event for the Reopening of the Independent Fostering Arrangements and Children's Homes DPS Buyer: Northamptonshire Children's Trust Current stage: Planning OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-07885f [View canonical contract page](https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-07885f) [Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-07885f.json) ## Summary Northamptonshire Children's Trust plans to reopen its Dynamic Purchasing System for placements with independent fostering agencies and children's homes. The services are intended to provide children in care with safe, suitable homes and support tailored to their needs, wellbeing and development into adulthood. Fostering placements cover standard, enhanced, complex-needs and emergency care, transitions from children's homes to family care, and parent-and-child placements. Children's home placements cover standard, specialist, complex-needs and emergency provision. Delivery is in Northamptonshire, including Northampton and surrounding areas. The Trust is holding a pre-market engagement event to explain its plans and hear from providers; it is aimed at residential children's home providers and independent fostering agencies not already on the system. This is at the planning stage: the Trust has announced an intention to reopen its existing Dynamic Purchasing System, not issued an invitation to tender. The system began on 1 February 2024, with an initial term stated as running to 31 March 2028 and an option to extend to 31 March 2031. The published overall estimated value is £36 million. The Trust expects to publish a further notice on 28 October 2026. Its engagement event is scheduled for 23 October, 2–3pm, online via Microsoft Teams; the Trust plans to discuss the reopening process and commissioning intentions and invite questions and feedback. Providers may apply for one or more service categories when the system reopens. The Light Touch Regime applies. No award criteria or assessment method is stated here. The planned system is relevant to independent fostering agencies and residential children's home providers seeking future placement work for children in care in Northamptonshire. Providers can consider applying for one or more categories, so organisations focused on particular placement types may be able to take part without covering the full range. The breadth of provision includes routine placements as well as enhanced, specialist, complex-needs and emergency support, transitions from children's homes to family care, and parent-and-child placements. Suppliers will need to be able to provide safe, suitable homes and support responsive to children's individual needs, wellbeing and development. The Trust is seeking market input on its future commissioning plans, so providers with experience delivering these services can use the engagement session to share views and understand the intended reopening before the procurement reaches tender. ## Notice Northamptonshire Children's Trust (hereafter referred to as the "Children's Trust") is re-opening the Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS) for Independent Fostering Arrangements and Children's Homes. Northamptonshire Children's Trust (NCT) would like to invite Residential Children's Home Providers and Independent Fostering Agencies who are not currently part of the framework to attend the forthcoming Pre-Market Engagement Event. As part of the preparations to re-open the Children's Services Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS), we are keen to engage with providers, share our future plans, and gain valuable insight from the market. Event Details: Date: Friday 23 October Time: 2:00pm to 3:00pm Venue: Microsoft Teams The session will include: - An overview of the DPS re-opening process. - Future commissioning intentions. - Opportunities for providers to ask questions and provide feedback. - Information on how organisations can participate in future procurement opportunities. To reserve your place, please complete the registration form below: https://url.uk.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/ioNHCy6kBCYGYBwHZfm0sxUIIV?domain=forms.cloud.microsoft Following registration, a Teams meeting link will be sent directly to the email address provided. We encourage any provider interested in future opportunities to attend and look forward to hearing your views The primary role of Independent Fostering Arrangements and Children's Homes is to provide homes to ensure children in our care have a place that is safe and suitable for their individual needs, where they are supported by people who care for them and about them to achieve their full potential, develop resilience, enjoy good health and wellbeing and develop into adulthood. The Children's Trust previously set up the DPS which commenced on 1st February 2024 with an initial term of 4 years and 2 months (i.e. to 31st March 2028), with an option to extend for up to an additional 3 years (until 31st March 2031). Services will be categorised by the following lots that are described further in the specification: Lot 1: Independent Fostering Agency placements for Children in Care Category 1.1 - Standard Category 1.2 - Enhanced Category 1.3 - Complex Needs Category 1.4 - Emergency Category 1.5 - Transition to Family Care from Children's Homes Category 1.6 - Parent and Child Lot 2: Children's Homes placements for Children in Care Category 2.1 - Standard Homes Category 2.2 - Specialist Homes Category 2.3 - Complex Needs Category 2.4 - Emergency Potential Providers can apply for one or more Lots and Categories. Please note: this contract originally started on 1st February 2024. The Light Touch Regime (LTR) applies to the Services under this DPS, as per Public Contracts Regulations 2015. ### Lot Information Lot 1: Independent Fostering Arrangements The primary role of Independent Fostering Arrangements and Children's Homes is to provide homes to ensure children in our care have a place that is safe and suitable for their individual needs, where they are supported by people who care for them and about them to achieve their full potential, develop resilience, enjoy good health and wellbeing and develop into adulthood. The Children's Trust previously set up the DPS which commenced on 1st February 2024 with an initial term of 4 years and 2 months (i.e. to 31st March 2028), with an option to extend for up to an additional 3 years (until 31st March 2031). Services will be categorised by the following lots that are described further in the specification: Lot 1: Independent Fostering Agency placements for Children in Care Category 1.1 - Standard Category 1.2 - Enhanced Category 1.3 - Complex Needs Category 1.4 - Emergency Category 1.5 - Transition to Family Care from Children's Homes Category 1.6 - Parent and Child Lot 2 - Children's Homes Potential Providers can apply for one or more Lots and Categories. Please note: this contract originally started on 1st February 2024. The Light Touch Regime (LTR) applies to the Services under this DPS, as per Public Contracts Regulations 2015. ## Key Details | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication source | Find A Tender Service | | Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/097398-2026 | | Notice type | Planning Notice | | Procurement type | Dynamic | | 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 | 15 Oct 2026 | | Submission deadline | Not specified | | Future notice date | 28 Oct 2026 | | Award date | Not specified | | Contract period | Not specified | | Recurrence | Not specified | ## Values | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender value | £36,000,000 | | 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 | Northamptonshire Children's Trust | | Locality | NORTHAMPTON | | Postcode area | Northampton | | Postcode | NN1 1ED | | Country | England | | ITL 1 | TLF East Midlands (England) | | ITL 2 | TLF2 Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | | ITL 3 | TLF24 West Northamptonshire | | Local authority | West Northamptonshire | | Electoral ward | Castle | | Westminster constituency | Northampton North | | Delivery location | TLF24 West Northamptonshire, TLF25 North Northamptonshire | ## CPV Codes ### Divisions - 85 - Health and social work services ### Codes - 85000000 - Health and social work services ## Release History - 15 Oct 2026 at 11:50 - Planning - Planning Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/097398-2026 ## Notice URLs - https://nctrust.co.uk/ - https://url.uk.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/ioNHCy6kBCYGYBwHZfm0sxUIIV?domain=forms.cloud.microsoft ## 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-07885f. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-07885f.json.