Prior information notice
This notice is for prior information only
Section I: Contracting
authority
I.1) Name and addresses
Hampshire County Council
The Castle, High Street
Winchester
SO238UJ
UK
E-mail: Procurement.Support@hants.gov.uk
NUTS: UKJ36
Internet address(es)
Main address: https://www.hants.gov.uk/
I.3) Communication
The procurement documents are available for unrestricted and full direct access, free of charge at:
https://in-tendhost.co.uk/hampshire/aspx/Home
Additional information can be obtained from the abovementioned address
I.4) Type of the contracting authority
Regional or local authority
I.5) Main activity
General public services
Section II: Object
II.1) Scope of the procurement
II.1.1) Title
Connect to Work Delivery
Reference number: HA21827 / HA26961
II.1.2) Main CPV code
80000000
II.1.3) Type of contract
Services
II.1.4) Short description
This Prior Information Notice (PIN) is to notify interested parties of a future procurement opportunity relating to 'Connect to Work' and invite suppliers to an online market engagement session.
Subject to a Grant Funding Agreement from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), Hampshire County Council (HCC) aims to use the evidence-based Supported Employment 'place, train and maintain' model to support disabled people, those with health conditions and specified disadvantaged groups with multiple and complex barriers, to gain and maintain or retain employment.
For clarity, this opportunity will be a Call-Off from the existing Open Framework for Skills Development for Hampshire 2023-2033 (procured under the Public Contract Regulations 2015) and will not be an openly advertised tender opportunity. Suppliers can join the framework at any time, but only suppliers who have successfully been appointed to the framework by the date of publishing the opportunity, will be eligible to submit a tender.
Market Engagement Event - Hampshire County Council is the Accountable Body (AB) for Connect to Work for the full geographical area of the County, excluding the area covered by the unitary authorities of Portsmouth, Southampton and the Isle of Wight. HCC will be hosting a pre-market engagement event with key partners, stakeholders and interested parties prior to official procurement activities to support shaping our approach to commissioning the programme.
The purpose of this online session is to provide a high-level overview of our approach to the Connect to Work commissioning process, specification, and timescales.
Once Connect to Work has gone live across Hampshire this Autumn, the Connect to Work Contract Management Team will support and challenge delivery providers to meet contracted profiles enabling HCC to scale up delivery. This will be a 5-year Delivery programme ending in March 2030, so anticipate the contact duration to be around 4 years and 8 months. The estimated maximum value of the call-off contracts will be approximately between £15-20million, subject to DWP approval.
Project Timescales - The Call-Off from the Skills Open Framework is anticipated to be published in the Summer 2025 and will run for approximately 30 days.
Interested suppliers will need to apply and be accepted on to the Skills Open Framework in order to be invited to tender. Please visit https://in-tendhost.co.uk/hampshire/aspx/ProjectManage/21827 for more information and click 'Express Interest' in preparation for the future opportunity.
This Prior Information Notice (PIN) is to notify interested parties of a future procurement opportunity under an existing framework procured under the Public Contract Regulations 2015. Further details can be found in the Additional Information under Sections 11.2.4 and VI.3 of this notice.
II.1.6) Information about lots
This contract is divided into lots:
Yes
The contracting authority reserves the right to award contracts combining the following lots or groups of lots:
The market engagement event will be used to shape our approach to the lotting structure, the number of lots is subject to change.
II.2) Description
Lot No: 1
II.2.2) Additional CPV code(s)
75131000
79611000
79632000
79634000
80400000
80510000
80521000
II.2.3) Place of performance
NUTS code:
UKJ35
UKJ36
UKJ37
Main site or place of performance:
The offer will cover the Hampshire County Council local authority area, excluding the unitary authority areas of Portsmouth, Southampton and the Isle of Wight.
II.2.4) Description of the procurement
Please note: This notice is to inform the market of an upcoming procurement opportunity. The procurement will be managed via the Council's e-tendering system (In-tend).
HCC anticipates to contract with a variety of experienced supported employment delivery providers via a call-off with lots yet to be determined, from the HCC Skills Open Framework. The offer will cover the Hampshire County Council local authority area, excluding the unitary authority areas of Portsmouth, Southampton and the Isle of Wight. The offer will not be open to other Authorities to access.
II.2.14) Additional information
The market engagement event will be used to shape our approach to the lotting structure, the number of lots is subject to change.
II.3) Estimated date of publication of contract notice:
31/07/2025
Section IV: Procedure
IV.1) Description
IV.1.8) Information about Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)
The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement:
Yes
Section VI: Complementary information
VI.3) Additional information
Hampshire County Council would like to invite key partners, stakeholders and interested parties to an online market engagement session to help inform the Council's future commissioning arrangements for Connect to Work.
The session will be a maximum of 1 hour and will cover;
- Overview of Connect to Work
- Hampshire County Council's proposed approach
- Contracting options
- Tendering process including indicative timescales.
- Q&A Opportunity
The session will take place on 10 June 2025 at 10:00am and be held via MS Teams.
Suppliers wishing to attend should register using the following link: https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/76a46d75-ebe0-41e7-9f09-b9954da56165@3f81d8b5-ee07-4c17-869c-1db439018d9b
Suppliers are encouraged to register well in advance of the event start date/time.
For clarity, opportunity will result in a Call-Off from the existing Open Framework for Skills Development for Hampshire 2023-2033 (procured under the Public Contract Regulations 2015) and will not be an openly advertised tender opportunity. Suppliers can join the framework at any time, but only suppliers who have successfully been appointed to the framework by the date of publishing the opportunity, will be eligible to submit a tender. For suppliers wishing to get onboarded on to the Open Skills Framework, please visit the following link for guidance - https://www.hants.gov.uk/business/open-framework#step-1
VI.5) Date of dispatch of this notice
15/05/2025