---
title: "Social Media Screening Services"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-078993"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-078993"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-078993.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-078993.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Planning"
buyer: "Essex County Council"
published: "2026-10-16"
---

# Social Media Screening Services

Buyer: Essex County Council  
Current stage: Planning  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-078993

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## Summary

Essex County Council is exploring social media screening services for its HR Shared Services team, which provides employment vetting to more than 900 schools across Essex and to local authorities and other public-sector organisations. The service is intended to support screening of candidates’ online presence, including searches across social media platforms and internet search engines, in line with Keeping Children Safe in Education guidance. Suppliers are being asked about coverage of platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube, Reddit and Threads, as well as screening methods and reporting. The service would support employment vetting across Essex; the engagement also seeks examples of delivery to comparable public-sector customers.

This is early market engagement at the planning stage, not a formal tender or invitation to quote. Essex County Council is gathering information to shape possible future service requirements and procurement. The council expects the service period to run from 1 April 2027 to 31 March 2028. Suppliers interested in contributing to the market engagement are asked to send responses by 28 October 2026; this is an engagement response date, not a bid deadline. The council is seeking information on services, platform coverage, KCSIE compliance, capacity and turnaround, pricing models, reporting, information security and public-sector experience. Responses will inform future procurement activity; participation does not confer an advantage or disadvantage in any later procurement.

This engagement is relevant to providers of social media screening and online vetting services, particularly those able to demonstrate coverage across major social platforms and internet search engines, and an approach aligned with KCSIE requirements. Essex County Council is testing supplier capacity, annual volumes, turnaround times and pricing structures, so providers should be ready to explain delivery scale, per-check and volume pricing, and any implementation, licence or annual fees. Useful evidence includes experience with schools, multi-academy trusts, local authorities or other public bodies, including a customer operating at comparable scale. Suppliers should also be prepared to describe clear, auditable reporting, handling of protected characteristics, data protection and information security controls, and relevant credentials such as ICO registration, Cyber Essentials or ISO 27000. The council may seek demonstrations as part of engagement.

## Notice

Essex County Council (ECC) is seeking information from suppliers of social media screening services as part of an early market engagement exercise. ECC's HR Shared Services team provides employment vetting services to over 900 schools across Essex, as well as a range of local authority and other public sector organisations. We are reviewing the market to better understand current service offerings, pricing models, capacity, technology, reporting capabilities and supplier experience. The information gathered will help inform our future service requirements and any potential procurement activity. Please note, this exercise does not form part of a formal procurement process and participation will not confer any advantage or disadvantage in any future procurement activity.

### Planning Information

If you are interested in taking part in this preliminary market engagement, please complete the following questions and send to rachael.flynn@essex.gov.uk.
Please provide responses to the following questions:
Organisation Details
• Organisation Name
• Contact Name
• Contact Email
• Website
1. Service Overview
Please provide a brief overview of your social media screening service, including screening approach and how long you have provided social media screening services for (maximum 250 words).
2. Platforms Included
Requirement Yes / No
Facebook
Instagram
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
TikTok
YouTube
Reddit
Threads
Other
3. KCSIE Compliance
ECC is seeking to understand how suppliers interpret and deliver against the online search requirements set out in Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) guidelines.
Please answer the following, with a Yes/No, providing further detail where relevant.
Does your service include searches of internet search engines (e.g. Google, Bing or equivalent)?
Is this search automated or manually undertaken?
If search engine checks are not currently included, are there plans to introduce this functionality?
Please provide any additional information on how your organisation ensures compliance with the requirements of Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE).
(This can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/keeping-children-safe-in-education--2)
4. Volumes & Capacity
Please indicate annual volumes managed, maximum annual capacity and typical turnaround times.
5. Pricing Model
Please provide an overview of your pricing structure, including:
• Cost per check.
• Volume discounts.
• Any implementation, licence, or annual fees.
6. Public Sector Experience & Reference
Please confirm experience of delivering social media screening services to other public sectors e.g. Schools, MAT’s, Local Authorities, NHS, Police or other public sector organisations.
Please provide details of at least one current customer operating at a similar scale to ECC and briefly describe:
• Customer organisation
• Services provided
• Screening volumes
• Length of relationship
• Contact name and email address
7. Reporting
Please describe the reports produced as part of your social media screening service, including:
• The format of the report provided to customers.
• How findings are categorised and presented.
• Whether screenshots or supporting evidence are included.
• How audit trails and decision-making are recorded.
• Any management information, dashboard or volume reporting available.
• How protected characteristics are managed within reporting.
Please provide a sample report where available.
8. Compliance and Information Security
Please briefly describe how your organisation ensures compliance with relevant data protection and information security requirements when delivering social media screening services.
Please include details of any relevant certifications such as ICO registration, Cyber Essentials, & ISO 27000.
9. Additional Information
Please provide any information you believe would help us understand your solution, approach, and value proposition.
10. Supplier Demonstrations
Please indicate whether you would be willing to participate in a short supplier demonstration and discussion as part of this market engagement exercise.
Yes / No
11. Register your interest
Should ECC proceed with a procurement exercise, would you like to receive the Request for Quotation (RFQ)?
Yes / No

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/097975-2026 |
| Notice type | UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Not Specified |
| Procurement method details | Not specified |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | Not specified |
| All stages | Planning |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 16 Oct 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | Not specified |
| Contract period | 1 Apr 2027 - 1 Apr 2028 |
| 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 | Essex County Council |
| Locality | CHELMSFORD |
| Postcode area | 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

- 72 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support
- 79 - Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security

### Codes

- 72000000 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support
- 79600000 - Recruitment services

## Release History

- 16 Oct 2026 at 13:48 - Planning - UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/097975-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/097975-2026
  16th October 2026 - Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/keeping-children-safe-in-education--2
- 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-078993. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-078993.json.