Opportunity Details

The Council wishes to establish a Flexible Contracting Agreement (FCA) via the Light Touch Regime in accordance with Regulation 34 of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (PCR 2015) and the Public Procurement (Amendments, Repeals and Revocations) Regulations 2016as set out in Schedule 3 of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (Annex A) (PCR 2015) in relation to Social, Health and Education services.

The Council wishes to establish a Flexible Contracting Agreement for support and integration services for refugees and sanctuary seekers who arrive and are living in Birmingham via Government initiatives and policies and who are entitled to local authority support.

The services will be split into 5 lots in total as follows:

• P0915A Lot 1: Tenancy & Family Support (follow on service) - to help refugees and sanctuary seekers with maintaining their tenancies, including personal budgeting and providing support with family welfare issues.
• P0915A Lot 2: Refugee Participation and Engagement - to link refugees and sanctuary seekers to local support to prevent social isolation, according to their interests and hobbies, as well as to encourage links with local support and communities.
• P0915A Lot 3: Employability Service - to assist refugees and sanctuary seekers in becoming work ready, obtaining employment, creating career pathways, providing training opportunities and supporting with recruitment and selection processes.
• P0915A Lot 4: Wellbeing & Mental Health - to raise awareness regarding mental health issues amongst refugees and sanctuary seekers and help them access relevant services.
• P0915B Lot 5: Support, Orientation & Accommodation: To facilitate the initial settlement period for new refugees and sanctuary seekers in Birmingham including delivery of information, advice & guidance.

The Flexible Contracting Agreement (FCA) will last for 4 years (unless terminated under agreement provisions). It will operate in a similar way to a Dynamic Purchasing System and remain open for suppliers to join at any time during the duration of the FCA.

The Flexible Contracting Agreement (FCA) will be awarded to unlimited providers in each lot; providers can apply for multiple lots. Potential Suppliers only need to complete the Selection Questionnaire elements once, even if applying for more than one lot.

The FCA is a two-stage process:

• Stage 1 – Selection Stage: All Potential Suppliers must submit a Request To Participate and pass the criteria to be appointed to the FCA. The selection stage consists of qualification questions to select Organisations. The questionnaire will be based on mandatory and discretionary exclusion criteria as well as quality assessment questions. All successful participants will be admitted to the FCA.
• Stage 2 – Invitation To Tender: Following consultation, the Council will develop service requirements based on existing and future needs. A Further Competition will take place based on the specific requirements.

All FCA Suppliers in the relevant lot will be invited to tender for the requirement. Where the requirement could be delivered by more than one lot the opportunity will be offered to the relevant lots that could deliver.

The Council will be using its free to use e-tendering system (in-tend) for the administration of this procurement process and potential suppliers must register with the system to be able to express an interest.

If you wish to express an interest in this opportunity please click on the following link to access https://in-tendhost.co.uk/birminghamcc/ and submit your details to register. You will then be sent details on how to log on which will enable you to download all relevant documentation.

If you are unable to register with In-tend or have any questions or problems on how to use this web site please either email us at: etendering@birmingham.gov.uk

The DPS is open to providers until 31st March 2027 to join and are required to complete and return of the selection questionnaire using the Supplier Portal.