Scope
Description
North Northamptonshire Council seeks to commission a one-year training programme in pregnancy bonding and attachment, with a focus on strengthening relationships between parents and infants from the earliest stages of pregnancy through to the end of the first 1,001 critical days. Empowering expectant parents to form strong, positive bonds with their unborn babies and to nurture these relationships as their child grows.
The total budget available for this opportunity is £38,000, and suppliers are invited to provide proposals that deliver against the requirements within this funding envelope.
This programme will form a central part of the North Northamptonshire Family Hubs model, which has mobilised four Family Hub Networks across each locality (Corby, East Northants, Kettering and Wellingborough) to provide integrated, accessible, and family-centred support.
To strengthen this offer, the training is designed for the Early Help workforce, operating within the Family Hub Network, which includes Best Start in Life (BSIL) practitioners, Service Managers, Early Years Practitioners, and Family Hub Connectors. By embedding this training in Family Hubs, services will be equipped with the skills, confidence, and consistency needed to support parents in building strong bonds with their babies from pregnancy and beyond.
The Training Programme aims to:
• Strengthen the capacity of the Family Hub workforce to promote and support bonding and secure parent-infant relationships from pregnancy onwards.
• Equip practitioners with evidence-based knowledge and skills to recognise, prevent, and respond to perinatal mental health and bonding difficulties.
• Build a shared language and approach across the workforce to improve consistency of practice and ensure families receive joined-up support.
• Promote inclusive practice that recognises and values the roles of fathers, partners, and diverse family structures in early bonding and attachment.
• Contribute to the delivery of the North Northamptonshire Perinatal Mental Health and Parent-Infant Relationships Strategy (2024) by addressing the identified gap in workforce development.
Total value (estimated)
- £38,000 excluding VAT
- £47,500 including VAT
Below the relevant threshold
Contract dates (estimated)
- 19 November 2025 to 30 October 2026
- 11 months, 12 days
Main procurement category
Services
CPV classifications
- 85000000 - Health and social work services
Contract locations
- UKF - East Midlands (England)
Participation
Particular suitability
- Small and medium-sized enterprises (SME)
- Voluntary, community and social enterprises (VCSE)
Submission
Enquiry deadline
24 October 2025, 11:59pm
Tender submission deadline
31 October 2025, 11:59pm
Submission address and any special instructions
Request for Quotation. Completed submissions to be returned to Sorayah.Mbuthia@northnorthants.gov.uk by no later than the Deadline for Submission of Bids, Friday, 31 October 2025.
Tenders may be submitted electronically
No
Award criteria
The award criteria is set out in the Request For Quotation documentation. It is a combination of price and quality.
Quality 80% and Price 20%
Procedure
Procedure type
Below threshold - open competition
Contracting authority
North Northamptonshire Council
- Public Procurement Organisation Number: PQCM-5634-HGCN
The Corby Cube, George Street
Corby
NN17 1QG
United Kingdom
Contact name: Sorayah Mbuthia
Region: UKF25 - North Northamptonshire
Organisation type: Public authority - sub-central government