Official UK procurement notice
Assessment of Needs Tool and Digital Platform for Children at Risk of Deprivation of Liberty
Authority: Department for Education (Central government)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionThe Department for Education (DfE) has awarded a contract for the provision of a validated Assessment of Needs Tool and an integrated digital platform to support the delivery of Home Again via Regional Care Cooperatives (RCCs).
Home Again brings together children’s social care, health, youth justice, education and other relevant partners to provide earlier, coordinated and evidence-based responses for children and young people (CYP) who are at risk of, or subject to, deprivation of liberty.
The contracted solution provides a validated assessment of need tool designed to deliver a holistic view of each child’s needs, risks, strengths and required support. The tool supports the development of multidisciplinary plans through the Home Again service and enables proactive and timely interventions.
The integrated digital platform supports secure assessment completion, appropriate multi-agency information sharing, local reporting on activity and outcomes, and the generation of anonymised aggregated data for national analysis. The solution is intended to improve system-wide understanding of this cohort, support commissioning and planning decisions, and provide insights to inform practice approaches that help keep children and young people safe while avoiding unnecessary deprivation of liberty.
The contract also supports the generation of learning regarding the implementation of a validated assessment of need tool across different local systems, including organisational, cultural, technical and commercial factors that influence adoption, usability, sustainability and impact within children’s social care, health and youth justice settings.
Contract awarded to: Thalamos Limited.
CPV: Content or data standardization and classification services · Data analysis services · Industry specific software development services · Information technology services · Social services
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedWhat it takes to wini
How this buyer will score bids.
The evaluation criteria and weights exactly as published on the notice, grouped by family (price, quality, social value and so on).
Evaluation split and conditions of participation as published; the tender pack may add morei
How this buyer will score bids.
The evaluation criteria and weights exactly as published on the notice, grouped by family (price, quality, social value and so on).
Published sub-criteria (1)
- Technical Quality - use of Price per Quality evaluation methodology: 100%
Published award criteria (1)
- Technical Quality - use of Price per Quality evaluation methodology
- Price carries 100 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 10 points. This one is won on the number: sharpen the price before polishing the prose.
Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula.
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Procedure method
- Open procedure
- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Services
- Notice status
- Awarded
- Procurement threshold
- Above threshold (FTS publication)
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 2 Mar 2026, 13:16 GMT
- Last source update
- 14 Sept 2026, 14:36 BST
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 19 Aug 2026
- Authority reference
10219 AoN- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-053926- Latest notice
- Contract details notice (UK7)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-065f95Find a Tender
How it was run
Official notice- Submission deadline
- 3 Jul 2026, 12:00 BST
- Clarification deadline
- 19 Jun 2026, 17:00 BST
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
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Timeline
2 Mar 2026 → 14 Sept 2026 · 9 dates- Planning notice published238 days ago2 Mar 2026, 13:16 GMT
- Market engagement223 days ago16 Mar 2026, 23:59 GMT
Market Engagement event will take place Tuesday 17 March at 10:00.
To register interest please send an email by close of business on Monday 16 March at 5pm to - [email protected] - and we will provide meeting details.
Market Engagement Activities
DfE plans to hold virtual briefings, one‑to‑one discussions, and may issue a request for information. Suppliers will be invited to share capabilities, innovations, risks, and delivery considerations. Participation will not give any advantage in future procurement.
The Department for Education (DfE) is seeking early market engagement to inform a potential procurement for a Needs Assessment Tool and integrated e‑platform. This work aims to support children and young people (CYP) aged 8–18 with multiple and complex needs who are at risk of, or subject to, Deprivation of Liberty Orders (DoLO).
Background
Increasing numbers of CYP with complex needs require multi‑agency support across social care, health, and youth justice. Current processes are fragmented, resulting in inconsistent assessment practices, delayed interventions, and rising use of unregistered or high‑cost placements. A unified, evidence‑based assessment tool is needed to improve early identification, planning, and outcomes.
Purpose of the Project
The proposed project will design, develop, and implement:
- A validated, holistic assessment tool capturing needs, risks, and strengths.
- A secure, interoperable e‑platform with analytical capabilities.
- A training and implementation model for use across five pilot areas.
- Aggregate data and insights to support strategic planning and commissioning.
What DfE Is Seeking from the Market
DfE seeks supplier expertise in:
- Assessment tool design (including modular and rapid‑assessment formats).
- Digital platform development, interoperability, security, and predictive analytics.
- Training delivery, engagement, and large‑scale implementation.
- Data governance, UK GDPR compliance, and DPIA processes.
- Aggregate data analysis, profiling, and reporting.
Indicative Timescales
The potential project will run for up to 30 months, covering development, rollout, assessment delivery, data analysis, and final reporting.
- Tender notice published140 days ago8 Jun 2026, 16:01 BST
- Clarification questions by129 days ago19 Jun 2026, 17:00 BST
- Submission deadline115 days ago3 Jul 2026, 12:00 BST
- Assessment summaries sent70 days ago17 Aug 2026, 00:00 BST
- Award decision expected by67 days ago19 Aug 2026, 23:59 BST
- Contract starts55 days ago1 Sept 2026, 00:00 BST
- Latest notice published42 days ago14 Sept 2026, 14:36 BST
Notice history
12 events · 7 releases on Find a Tender · since 2 Mar 2026- Preliminary market engagement notice published2 Mar 2026, 13:16 GMTUK2
- Tender notice published8 Jun 2026, 16:01 BSTUK4
- Status changed to active8 Jun 2026, 16:01 BST
- Procurement method changed8 Jun 2026, 16:01 BST
- Deadline published: 3 Jul 2026, 12:00 BST8 Jun 2026, 16:01 BST
- Tender notice published9 Jun 2026, 10:24 BSTUK4
- Tender notice published9 Jun 2026, 10:28 BSTUK4
- Tender notice published29 Jun 2026, 14:22 BSTUK4
- Contract award notice published17 Aug 2026, 14:39 BSTUK6
- Status changed to complete17 Aug 2026, 14:39 BST
- Contract signature expected28 Aug 2026, 23:59 BSTscheduled
- Contract details notice published14 Sept 2026, 14:36 BSTUK7
Routine re-releases (7)
- 2026-06: 3 releases · 8 Jun 2026, 9 Jun 2026
- 2026-03: 1 release · 2 Mar 2026
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thalamos Limited1 Sept 2026 – 31 Mar 2029 · up to 31 Mar 2030Extensions: Extra 1 year optional extension · Options: Extra 1 year optional extension | £1,128,943 | 13 Aug 2026 | Awarded |
| Thalamos Limited | £1,128,943 † | — | Awarded |
Contracts
Contract 2 · Thalamos Limited
- Signed
- 9 Sept 2026
- Value
- £1,128,943
- Period
- 9 Sept 2026 – 31 Mar 2029 · up to 31 Mar 2030 with extensions
- Status
- active
- Extensions
- 12 months
1 agreed KPI: Supplier must demonstrate effective pre delivery engagement across all areas to build understanding, readiness and local ownership of the Assessment of Need tool and delivery model.Supplier must demonstrate effective pre delivery engagement across all areas to build understanding, readiness and local ownership of the Assessment of Need tool and delivery model.
- Supplier must demonstrate effective pre delivery engagement across all areas to build understanding, readiness and local ownership of the Assessment of Need tool and delivery model.Supplier must demonstrate effective pre delivery engagement across all areas to build understanding, readiness and local ownership of the Assessment of Need tool and delivery model., Identification of key stakeholder groups in each area (e.g. social care, health, youth justice, commissioning, providers). Delivery of pre-training engagement activity in each area, such as briefings, workshops, or information sessions. Clear articulation of: • the purpose of Home Again programme, • how the Assessment of Need tool will be used in practice, • what will change for practitioners. Collection and summary of stakeholder feedback, including: • key questions or risks raised, • actions taken or plans to address concerns. Stake holder map signed off by Home Again lead. Engagement activity delivered in all confirmed Home Again areas, with readiness assessments completed for participating organisations and findings reported to the Authority. Supplier to report invitations issued, attendance figures, participating organisations, readiness findings, identified risks and mitigation actions. Stakeholder readiness score ≥75% (survey-based) 100% of critical risks logged and mitigation plans in place.
Bid statistics published by the authority
| Bids | SME | VCSE | Valid bid range |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3final-stage tenders | 3 | 0 | — |
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Bidders & participating suppliers
1 commercial party on the notice- Thalamos LimitedAwarded supplier
Official documents & specifications (7)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Contract details notice Contract details notice on Find a Tender
- Contract award notice Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender
- Preliminary market engagement notice Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender