CONTRACT NOTICE – NATIONAL

1 Authority Details

1.1

Authority Name and Address

1.2

Address from which documentation may be obtained

1.3

Completed documents must be returned to:

2 Contract Details

2.1

Title

Extended Reality Career Pathways Resource

2.2

Description of the goods or services required

Introduction

The Extended Reality (XR) Careers Modules Project is a collaborative initiative between WeCare Wales, the Practice Development Team at Powys County Council, the Recruitment and Retention Work Stream in West Wales Region (covering Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion & Pembrokeshire Local Authorities), and the supplier awarded this contract.

Background

The social care and childcare sectors currently face significant challenges in engaging and recruiting young people. Traditional methods of career promotion often struggle to capture high school students or to convey the depth and impact of roles within these vital fields. There is a growing need for innovative, engaging approaches that provide a realistic, inspiring glimpse into careers in social care and childcare.

The XR Careers Modules Project will provide an innovative and bespoke resource for WeCare Wales, Powys County Council and Carmarthenshire County Council, improving the quality, consistency and appeal of career promotion efforts. By leveraging XR technology, the project aims to enhance the quality, consistency and appeal of career promotion efforts. The project will offer students a compelling hands-on experience that builds career awareness, fosters empathy and skill development, and deepens their understanding of real-world challenges and rewards associated with social care and childcare careers.

Aims and objectives

The project aims to enhance the attraction and recruitment of young people into careers in the social care, health and childcare sectors by utilising the power of XR technology. Through the development of immersive and interactive modules, the project aims to support a clear career pathway for students from Year 7 to Year 12.

The project objectives are to:

- Enhance Career Awareness: Utilise XR technology to create immersive and interactive modules that provide students with a realistic understanding of ca-reers in social care and early years and childcare sectors to help them visual-ise and appreciate the roles and responsibilities involved.

- Increase Engagement: Develop engaging and age-appropriate training sce-narios that capture the attention of high school students and encourage ac-tive participation to make the learning experience enjoyable and memorable.

- Promote Skill Development: Provide realistic scenarios that allow students to practice and develop essential skills required in social care and childcare, such as empathy, communication, and problem-solving, in a safe and con-trolled environment.

- Immersive Learning: Engage in realistic scenarios that reflect the daily chal-lenges and responsibilities of each role.

- Standardise Career Information: Ensure consistent and accurate infor-mation about social care and early years and childcare careers across all modules, helping students make informed decisions about their future career paths.

- Support Continuous Learning: Facilitate ongoing exploration and learning by providing access to XR modules that can be revisited as needed. This will allow students to deepen their understanding and interest in social care and childcare careers.

- Enhance Digital Skills: Improve students' digital competence, confidence, and skills by engaging them with XR technology preparing them for the in-creasing use of digital tools in various professions.

- Increase Empathy and Understanding: Increase students' understanding of the challenges faced by individuals and families in need of social care to help break down barriers to engagement and foster empathy and compas-sion.

Career Pathways: Inspire and inform those considering a career in Social Care, informing them about different routes and training options to support their career choices.

Please see Specification for more detail

NOTE: To register your interest in this notice and obtain any additional information please visit the Sell2Wales Web Site at https://www.sell2wales.gov.wales/Search/Search_Switch.aspx?ID=151896.

The buyer has indicated that it will accept electronic responses to this notice via the Postbox facility. A user guide is available at https://www.sell2wales.gov.wales/sitehelp/help_guides.aspx.

Suppliers are advised to allow adequate time for uploading documents and to dispatch the electronic response well in advance of the closing time to avoid any last minute problems.

2.3

Notice Coding and Classification

2.4

Total quantity or scope of tender

Budget

There is a budget of £27,000 (inclusive of any applicable VAT) agreed for this quote.

The Supplier will provide full financial breakdown of the costs associated with the project for consideration through the evaluation process.

Prices must be quoted in pounds sterling and clearly state if VAT will or will not be charged.

Length of contract

The contract will run initially from 30 June – 3 November 2025 (Phase 1), with a possibility of being extended for a further 12 months, up to 31 October 2026 (Phase 2).

3 Conditions for Participation

3.1

Minimum standards and qualification required

4 Administrative Information

4.1

Type of Procedure

Single stage

4.2

Reference number attributed to the notice by the contracting authority

N/a

4.3

Time Limits

4.5

Language or languages in which tenders or requests to participate can be drawn up

4.6

Tender Submission Postbox

5 Other Information

5.1

Additional Information

Intellectual Property Rights

Upon completion of Phase 1, all intellectual property rights and ownership of the final XR modules produced shall be fully transferred to WeCare Wales. The supplier shall assign and relinquish any and all rights, title, and interest in the completed resources, including but not limited to copyrights and related rights, to WeCare Wales.

Accessibility Requirements

The supplier must ensure that:

- The final module format is accessible on standard school/college equipment (Windows PCs, Chromebooks, and tablets where possible), as well as on XR headsets.

- Adhere to XR Accessibility User Requirements

- Desktop versions are fully navigable via keyboards.

- High-contrast visuals and adjustable text sizes are utilised in desktop versions to support students with visual impairments.

- They avoid flashing content that could trigger seizures.

- Experiences are designed to minimise the need for rapid or complex physical actions (consider accessibility settings for students with limited mobility).

- Experiences are designed with user comfort in mind, incorporating features such as adjustable locomotion options (e.g. teleportation instead of smooth movement), stable horizon lines and minimised camera shake to reduce the risk of motion sickness.

- Modules are clear, straightforward, and free from unnecessary complexity.

Bilingual Requirements

The supplier must ensure that:

- All content is to be available equally in both Welsh and English to include fully recorded audio, all instructions, captions and supporting documentation.

- There must be no loss of functionality, features, or quality between the Welsh and English versions.

- All Welsh translations must be professionally produced — not machine-translated —in line with the requirements outline in section 5.1 of the RTQ

- An equal experience is delivered in Welsh and English across XR, desktop, and training materials, with no compromise in quality or user experience for either language.

(WA Ref:151896)

The buyer considers that this contract is suitable for consortia bidding.

5.2

Additional Documentation

5.3

Publication date of this notice