Scope
Reference
CS26629
Description
Hampshire County Council's Children Services Directorate is seeking to commission a range of IFA (independent fostering agencies) to support our looked after children cohort.
Hampshire County Council currently operate a Light Touch framework under the Public Contract Regulations 2015 and the end date of this framework is the 31st March 2026.
Hampshire County Council therefore needs to explore options for future commissioning arrangements to replace this framework.
The new service will need to cover fostering arrangements for;
Standard Foster Placements including Respite
Parent & Child Foster Placements
Children with Complex/Challenging Behaviours
Children with Disabilities/Complex Healthcare Needs
Separated Children
The priority of any future arrangements should be to secure Hampshire placements for Hampshire children and Young People to support with their education, training, contact, and in order to maintain other existing support networks such as friends and other family members.
Following on from the preliminary market engagement event in April which explored options for securing Hampshire placements for Hampshire children and young people we now wish to engage with providers on the transition process to Staying Put when they turn 18.
Total value (estimated)
- £200,000,000 excluding VAT
- £200,000,000 including VAT
Above the relevant threshold
Contract dates (estimated)
- 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2030
- Possible extension to 31 March 2034
- 8 years
Main procurement category
Services
CPV classifications
- 85000000 - Health and social work services
Contract locations
- UKJ3 - Hampshire and Isle of Wight
- UKJ - South East (England)
Engagement
Engagement deadline
22 August 2025
Engagement process description
Hampshire County Council would like to invite interested Independent Fostering Agencies to an online market engagement session to help inform the Council's future commissioning arrangements specifically regarding "Staying Put"
The session will be 90 minutes.
The session will take place at 13:30 on Tuesday the 5th August and be held via MS Teams. Following the event the Council will share a questionnaire with all suppliers attached to the project on intend to father their feedback.
Suppliers wishing to attend should register (if not already registered) on the Council's e-tendering platform, In-tend (https://in-tendhost.co.uk/hampshire/aspx/Home) and 'Express Interest' against the project 'CS26659 Independent Fostering Agencies'. Please then use the Correspondence function for the project and provide the name of attendees and their email addresses that invitations can be issued to.
Suppliers wishing to attend need to confirm with the Council, via the correspondence function of In-tend, by 9:00 on Friday 1st August 2025.
Submission
Publication date of tender notice (estimated)
20 October 2025
Procedure
Special regime
Light touch
Contracting authority
Hampshire County Council
- Public Procurement Organisation Number: PBHM-7586-PWLP
High St, The Castle
Winchester
SO23 8UJ
United Kingdom
Contact name: Strategic Procurement
Email: strategic.procurement@hants.gov.uk
Website: https://www.hants.gov.uk
Region: UKJ36 - Central Hampshire
Organisation type: Public authority - sub-central government