Official UK procurement notice
Criminal Justice Related Drug and Alcohol Referral Service for Adults
Authority: The Police and Crime Commissioner for Warwickshire (Police & fire)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionThe Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for Warwickshire invites tenders for the provision of a Criminal Justice Related Drug and Alcohol Referral Service for Adults.
The PCC seeks to commission an experienced provider to deliver an Arrest Referral Service across police custody settings in Warwickshire, together with associated substance misuse assessment, intervention and referral services. In addition, the provider will deliver a service within the Leamington Justice Centre courts' setting to offenders who have a history of substance use related problems, the provider will complete court requested suitability assessments for community sentences; and provide information to Court Probation Staff to inform Pre-Sentence Reports.
The service will undertake holistic criminal justice substance misuse assessments for individuals in custody who test positive following a Drug Test on Arrest and those who voluntarily engage with the service. Assessments will consider drug and/or alcohol use alongside offending behaviour, health, safeguarding, vulnerabilities and wider social needs, with the aim of identifying appropriate treatment, support and risk management interventions. The service will also undertake suitability assessments for Community Sentence Treatment Requirements, including Drug Rehabilitation Requirements and Alcohol Treatment Requirements.
Read the full description (3,612 more characters)
The service will maximise opportunities to identify and engage individuals experiencing drug and/or alcohol misuse at a key point of intervention within the criminal justice system. It will provide early intervention, harm reduction advice, brief interventions, and effective pathways into community drug and alcohol treatment and wider support services.
The successful provider will operate as a key partner within Warwickshire's multi-agency response to substance misuse and offending, working collaboratively with Warwickshire Police Custody, Probation, the commissioned community drug and alcohol treatment provider and other relevant statutory and community partners. The service will contribute to improved treatment engagement, improved criminal justice outcomes and the reduction of reoffending in Warwickshire.
The PCC is seeking a provider with relevant experience and expertise in delivering substance misuse and/or criminal justice services, with the capability to provide an appropriately skilled and resilient workforce within police custody and criminal justice environments. The provider will be expected to demonstrate effective multi-agency working, strong safeguarding and risk management arrangements, and the ability to engage individuals with complex needs and support them into appropriate treatment and wider services.
The requirement will be procured as a single contract and has not been divided into lots. The Authority considered whether to separate the custody and court-related elements of the service but determined that delivery through a single contract would provide continuity of service and straightforward, integrated referral pathways.
The contract will be awarded for an initial period of three (3) years, commencing 1 April 2027, with an option to extend for up to a further two (2) years, subject to funding availability.
The contract is funded through a fixed budget, subject to applicable funding terms and conditions. Funding levels may be subject to change during the contract period and any underspent funding must be returned to the Authority and/or relevant funding body. Contract values provided are indicative and dependent on VAT status of successful bidder(s).
How to Register
Full details of the service requirements, procurement process, conditions of participation, evaluation methodology, specification and contract terms and conditions and identified risks are contained within the procurement documents on the In-tend Bluelight portal
https://sell2.in-tend.co.uk/blpd/home
Please see Submission section below on how to register and respond.
This procurement is being conducted using a competitive flexible procedure for the award of an above-threshold Light Touch Contract under the Procurement Act 2023.
Preliminary market engagement has been carried out for this contract. We have made available the presentation slides and Q&A from the market engagement in the tender pack on In-tend for information purposes only. Where there is any conflict between the preliminary market engagement materials and the tender documents, the tender documents shall prevail.
The Authority reserves the right to amend the procurement timetable or process where permitted by law, make a future direct award where permitted, manage conflicts of interest in accordance with applicable requirements and its governance procedures, and not to award a contract as a result of this procurement exercise.
The Authority reserves the right to award the contract directly under Schedule 5, paragraph 8 of the Procurement Act if the competitive procedure does not result in an acceptable tender.
- How the procedure runs: Bidders will submit tenders and satisfy conditions of participation before being invited to present their bid to the PCC. Presentations and Q&A sessions will be used to clarify and validate information already contained within the submitted tender. The tender documents set out the award criteria and evaluation process in full.
CPV: Addiction treatment · Civic betterment and community facility support services · Community action programme · Community health services · Guidance and counselling services · Guidance services · Health and social work services · Other community, social and personal services · Psychiatrist or psychologist services · Social services · Social work and related services · Social work services
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedLot #1Lot 1RenewalPublished valueAED 892,617
- Value
- AED 892,617 exc. VAT · AED 1,071,140 inc. VAT
- Extensions
- At the discretion of the Authority the contract can be extended for up to a further two (2) years. The contract duration will be subject to funding availability. The Authority reserves the right to revisit the contract term should funding circumstances change in future.
What 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).
- Conditions of Participation and Assurance — Conditions of Participation will be assessed on a pass / fail basis as per the Procurement Specific Questionnaire and will consider the Supplier’s legal and financial capacity and technical ability. This stage will also include an assessment of information provided in the Supplier Assurance Questionnaire on a Pass/Fail basis. The Evaluation Panel will assess the supplier information provided via the Central Digital Platform for completeness and compliance with what is required under the Act and Regulations. This will include a review of Basic Supplier Information, Exclusion Grounds, some Economic and Financial Standing information (e.g. as set out in the supplier’s most recent financial accounts), and details of connected persons and beneficial ownership.
- Technical Questions — The Technical Response covers the below areas and the %age weightings of each: Proposed Service Delivery Model 25.00% Contract Mobilisation 5.00% Engagement, Motivation and Referral into Treatment 15.00% Partnership Working 10.00% Safeguarding, Risk and Vulnerability 10.00% Performance, Quality and Outcomes 15.00% Workforce and Service Resilience 5.00% Continuous Improvement and Added Value 5.00% Technical Questions MUST have due regard to the Financial Model being proposed.
- Social Value — Social Value 10.00% The Social Value element can be submitted via the DICM Pluggin portal, a platform we use that highlights local projects and charities which suppliers can support through donations, volunteering, or other resources. Full details are included in the tender documents.
- Financial Model — The Financial Model will NOT be evaluated as a standalone scored criterion. The Authority will use the submitted Financial Model and supporting statement to assess the credibility, sustainability, efficiency and deliverability of responses to the technical questions. In particular, the Authority may consider: • Value for money; • the alignment between the proposed service delivery model and the allocation of resources; • the balance between frontline delivery, management, Governance, Quality & Compliance, workforce structure, mobilisation and other support functions; • the sustainability and resilience of the proposed operating model throughout the Contract Term; and • whether the proposed allocation of resources/finances supports the achievement of the required outcomes and performance standards. Financial model will form part of the technical responses using the Scoring Methodology as outlined in the Tender documents.
- Presentation and Q&A — The purpose of the Presentation and Q&A session with the Authority is to provide: • Overview of their proposed Service Delivery Model • Overview of their Cost Allocation Model • How they intend to deliver Value for Money based on their Service Delivery Model and Cost Allocation Model • Mobilisation Overview • Partnership working approach • Improving Service Users’ experience The presentation does NOT have any standalone weighting. Its purpose is to confirm that the proposals being made are deliverable. It will be used to clarify, validate and provide assurance regarding the bidder's submitted tender and to support evaluators in their assessment of the tender against the published award criteria. Suppliers must NOT introduce new proposals, commitments, resources, methodologies or other material information that was not included within their written tender submission. The Authority reserves the right to amend evaluation scores where the presentation provides clarification of information already contained within the tender and where that clarification reasonably affects the evaluators' assessment against the published award criteria. Any score adjustment will be fully documented and will be based solely on the published award criteria and information contained within the tender submission.
No conditions of participation were published on the notice; check the tender documents.
Competition analysis · published record, not a forecast of who will bid
How The Police and Crime Commissioner for Warwickshire buys Social work services (CPV 8531) — and who usually turns up
The Police and Crime Commissioner for Warwickshire’s own published record, next to the West Midlands market for the same work. Frameworks and DPS are kept out: they attract a different number of bids. Whole-market view: Social work services (CPV 8531) →
How the contest usually goes
Left: this authority. Right: the market where the work is delivered. Bids and award-vs-estimate pairs are per lot, from contested contracts only — direct awards (including PA 2023 transparency notices) report one bid by definition and are left out. On Procurement Act 2023 notices the count is the tenders assessed at the final stage, not every submission received; pairs compare like with like (VAT-exclusive, or VAT-inclusive on both sides). Empty means nothing was published, not filled in from elsewhere.
The Police and Crime Commissioner for Warwickshire
contract notices in 36 months: 6 in CPV 8531 (3 route not published) · 8 in division 85 (3 route not published) · 17 in all categories (5 route not published)
i
How many companies usually bid for work like this.
Middle value of published bid counts, one per lot, for this buyer or this region in the same sector.
Based on this buyer’s tenders in all categories, last 36 months: 8 lots. All 8 lots are from Procurement Act 2023 notices, which count bids assessed.
Nothing is filled in from UK-wide numbers. An empty tile means nothing usable was published.
i
How often only one company bid.
Share of lots that received exactly one bid, on the same competitions as the bids figure.
Based on this buyer’s tenders in all categories, last 36 months: 8 lots.
High means a thin market or an incumbent that is hard to beat.
i
Do awards for work like this land above or below the estimate.
Estimate against award per lot, for this buyer or this region in the same sector.
Based on this buyer’s tenders in this sector (CPV 8531), last 36 months: 3 pairs.
A past pattern, not a price to bid.
i
How long buyers here take to decide after bids close.
Middle value in days from the deadline to the first award notice, on competitions that published both dates.
Based on this buyer’s tenders in all categories, last 36 months: 7 notices.
Only decided tenders count, so slow ones still waiting are not in.
i
How often this buyer changes a notice after publishing it.
Middle number of amendments per notice. Deadline extensions and corrections both count.
Based on this buyer’s tenders in all categories, last 24 months: 59 notices.
i
How often this buyer awards without a competition.
Direct or limited awards as a share of its notices that say which procedure was used. These routes are legal in defined cases. This is just the record.
Based on this buyer’s tenders in this sector (CPV 8531), last 36 months: 3 notices.
West Midlands · Social work services (CPV 8531)
contract notices delivered in West Midlands in 36 months: 198 in CPV 8531 (150 competed, 29 route not published) · 4,376 in division 85 (3,192 competed, 275 route not published)
i
How many companies usually bid for work like this.
Middle value of published bid counts, one per lot, for this buyer or this region in the same sector.
Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 8531), last 36 months: 102 lots. 46 lots are from Procurement Act 2023 notices (bids assessed, middle 3) and 56 from older notices (bids received, middle 6.5).
Nothing is filled in from UK-wide numbers. An empty tile means nothing usable was published.
i
How often only one company bid.
Share of lots that received exactly one bid, on the same competitions as the bids figure.
Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 8531), last 36 months: 102 lots.
High means a thin market or an incumbent that is hard to beat.
i
Do awards for work like this land above or below the estimate.
Estimate against award per lot, for this buyer or this region in the same sector.
Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 8531), last 36 months: 40 pairs.
A past pattern, not a price to bid.
i
How long buyers here take to decide after bids close.
Middle value in days from the deadline to the first award notice, on competitions that published both dates.
Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 8531), last 36 months: 42 notices.
Only decided tenders count, so slow ones still waiting are not in.
i
How much of this market goes to small and medium firms.
SME bidders where buyers published the split, otherwise SME winners.
Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 8531), last 36 months: 71 lots.
i
How much work like this goes to companies based in the delivery region.
Awards in this category delivered here where the winner’s registered address is in the region.
Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 8531), last 36 months: 219 awards.
Registered address, so a national firm with a local branch counts as outside.
i
Where this tender’s estimate would land if the usual pattern repeats.
We apply the buyer’s usual movement between estimate and award (or the region’s) to the estimate on this notice.
Based on 3 lots, so only the direction is shown, not a pound figure.
A benchmark, not a price to bid.
Who you are likely to meet i
Who you may be up against.
Suppliers on this buyer’s earlier similar contracts, and suppliers whose record fits this tender.
A guess from the record. Buyers do not publish who is bidding.
i
Who you may be up against.
Suppliers on this buyer’s earlier similar contracts, and suppliers whose record fits this tender.
A guess from the record. Buyers do not publish who is bidding.
Suppliers on this authority’s earlier similar contracts, then suppliers with a matching track record — from published award history, not a bid list
Suppliers with a similar track record — and how they price i
Suppliers with a similar track record, and how they price.
Suppliers matched on wins in this category, history with this buyer, location and size. Their award vs estimate is from their own past wins.
A guess from the record, not a bidder list.
i
Suppliers with a similar track record, and how they price.
Suppliers matched on wins in this category, history with this buyer, location and size. Their award vs estimate is from their own past wins.
A guess from the record, not a bidder list.
| Supplier | Evidence | Last award | Their award vs estimate | Relevance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Victim Support Large | 16 class wins · 4 lots for this buyer | this month | no comparable pairs | 66% |
| SAFELINE WARWICK SME | 1 class wins · 1 lots for this buyer | 5 months ago | no comparable pairs | 64% |
| Safeline SME | 1 class wins · 1 lots for this buyer | 45 months ago | no comparable pairs | 59% |
| Ideal for All | 15 class wins | 6 months ago | no comparable pairs | 59% |
| THE CART SHED CHARITY SME | 15 class wins | 10 months ago | no comparable pairs | 56% |
Matched by the nightly worker on class wins, buyer history, delivery geography, scale and notice text; relevance is a 0–100% heuristic score, not a probability of bidding. “Their award vs estimate” is that supplier’s median on its own comparable single-supplier wins, CPV 8531 first. Nobody here is known to be bidding.
Coverage and what to read with care
- Each tile explains itself. The on a figure says what it is, how it is counted and which scope this notice’s own record came from (class, division, all categories, or the authority’s 24-month row). The two columns are never blended and nothing is filled from a UK-wide figure; an empty tile means the source published nothing usable. Long form: Methodology.
- Coverage. Roughly 40 % of notices publish a bid count; about half publish an ITL1 delivery location, so the market column reads the authority’s registered region when the notice has none (labelled). About 30 % of award-vs-estimate pairs are exact matches — the buyer published the award at the estimate. n is on every figure; a thin sample is muted, never hidden.
- “Match” and “relevance” are model scores from the nightly matcher, not published facts. Find a Tender does not publish who is bidding. Never shown: contact details, payment behaviour, or a recommended price.
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Procedure method
- Competitive flexible procedure
- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Services
- Notice status
- Open for tender
- Procurement threshold
- Above threshold (FTS publication)
- Regulatory regime
- Light touch regime
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- No (one-off requirement)
- First published
- 25 Sept 2026, 11:08 BST
- Last source update
- 25 Sept 2026, 11:08 BST
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end — 5 Jan 2027, 23:59 GMT
- Authority reference
WPA26-0078- Latest notice
- Tender notice (UK4)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-06d654Find a Tender- Contract terms summary
- Payment terms will align with the funding terms and conditions.
- How it runs
- Bidders will submit tenders and satisfy conditions of participation before being invited to present their bid to the PCC. Presentations and Q&A sessions will be used to clarify and validate information already contained within the submitted tender. The tender documents set out the award criteria and evaluation process in full.
- Risks
As the contract falls within the Light Touch Regime, the Authority has greater flexibility to make contract modifications during the contract term. However, in the interests of transparency and to support a collaborative approach with prospective suppliers, the Authority has identified the following known risks that more…
may affect contract delivery: • Funding stability – Funding for these services is determined partly by factors outside the PCC’s direct control. Consequently, the PCC cannot absolutely guarantee the continued availability or stability of funding throughout the contract term. Should funding be reduced, withdrawn or otherwise impacted, the PCC will work closely with the provider(s) to mitigate any adverse effects on service delivery. • Funding levels – Decisions regarding the level of available funding are partly outside the PCC’s direct control and can fluctuate. As such, the PCC cannot guarantee that funding will remain at the anticipated level throughout the contract term. Funding levels may increase; however, there is also a risk that they may decrease. The PCC will work collaboratively with the provider(s) to manage and minimise any negative impacts arising from changes to funding levels. • OPCC abolishment – OPCC abolishment – The Government has announced its intention to abolish the PCC function. Should these proposals proceed, the parties will work collaboratively to agree and implement any necessary arrangements with the provider(s) to ensure a smooth and orderly transition and novation of the contracts. • TUPE – TUPE is a known risk within this procurement and will apply to the transfer of relevant employees. Providers should note that certain transferring roles may not align fully with their proposed service delivery model(s). Providers will be responsible for managing the TUPE process and all associated risks, liabilities, and compliance requirements. Following contract award and completion of the TUPE process, the PCC and the successful provider(s) will work collaboratively and in good faith to agree any reasonable and necessary amendments to the service delivery model and/or financial model arising directly from the outcome of TUPE. Any such amendments must be fully documented, appropriately evidenced, and clearly justified. To access TUPE data we require completion and submission of the 'TUPE Confidentiality Agreement' in the Tender pack.
How to participate & submission route
Official notice Submit via In-tend- Expression of interest (EOI)
- —
- Tender submission deadline
- 5 Nov 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Clarification deadline
- 30 Oct 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
All tenders must be submitted via the Warwickshire Police In-tend portal: https://sell2.in-tend.co.uk/blpd/home This is free to access for all Suppliers. Please ensure you register and upon log in, go to the ‘Portals’ section of your Sell2 account and select “Connect with Organisation” for Warwickshire Police. This will allow you to access the Warwickshire Police portal where the procurement documents can be found on the project’s Invitation to Tender tab. Please note if more…
you previously registered for the Pre Market Engagement your details will not have been carried over and you will need to express your interest again for this particular tender on the In-tend portal. All clarification questions must be submitted using the correspondence function within In-tend. Full details of the service requirements, procurement process, conditions of participation, evaluation methodology, specification and contract terms and conditions and identified risks are contained within the procurement documents.Timeline
8 published dates · Europe/London- Planning notice published58 days ago29 Jul 2026, 12:18 BST
- Market engagement35 days ago21 Aug 2026, 23:59 BST
Request for Information (RFI) via attendance at a webinar (optional - details of which are included in document on tendering portal) and completion of a questionnaire. To respond to this RFI please register your interest on our tendering portal and complete the RFI questionnaire contained at the more…
end of the document on the portal. Completed questionnaires to be returned via the portal. Link to our tendering portal is as follows: https://sell2.in-tend.co.uk/blpd/home Questionnaires to be returned no later than 12:00 midday BST on 21 August 2026. - Tender notice publishedearlier today25 Sept 2026, 11:08 BST
- Next notice expectedin 3 days28 Sept 2026, 23:59 BST
- Clarification questions byin 35 days30 Oct 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Submission deadlinein 41 days5 Nov 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Award decision expected byin 103 days5 Jan 2027, 23:59 GMT
- Contract startsin 187 days1 Apr 2027, 00:00 BST
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Nothing awarded yet- Awards (0)
- No award published
- Contracts (0)
- No contract published
- Bid statistics
- No aggregate bid statistics published
Notice history
6 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 29 Jul 2026- Tender notice published25 Sept 2026, 11:08 BSTUK4
- Published value updated to £892,61725 Sept 2026, 11:08 BSTwas £535,570
- Status changed to active25 Sept 2026, 11:08 BST
- Procurement method changed25 Sept 2026, 11:08 BST
- Deadline published: 5 Nov 2026, 12:00 GMT25 Sept 2026, 11:08 BST
- Preliminary market engagement notice published29 Jul 2026, 12:18 BSTUK2
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Official documents & specifications (4)
Official links; attachments are not copiedTender pack and attachments
- Bidding documents and specificationsAccess: All tender documents are to be published on the In-tend Bluelight portal. For details on how to register and access see Submission section of this notice.
- Conflict of interest declarationNot published
Notices published for this procedure
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender
- Preliminary market engagement notice Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender