Official UK procurement notice
Direct Payment Support Service · Darlington Borough Council (Feb 2026)
Authority: Darlington Borough Council (Local council)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionThe Direct Payment Support Service will enable Individuals eligible for social care funding to exercise choice and control over their care and support arrangements. The Council is committed to ensuring that the option of a Direct Payment is explored and understood by everyone who is eligible to receive one.
The Service will be available to an Individual who is eligible for social care services and chooses to take part or all of their Personal Budget as a Direct Payment to employ their own Personal Assistants or pay for other services of their choice.
The Provider shall deliver the service to;
Children and Adults eligible for Direct Payments, which may include, but not be limited to:
-Older people.
-People with physical disabilities, learning disabilities, autism, or mental health needs.
-People with fluctuating or complex needs.
-Individuals transitioning from Children's to adult services.
-Carers (including parent carers) managing Direct Payments on behalf of Individuals.
CPV: Financial and insurance services · Social work and related services
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedLot #1RenewalPublished value£726,000
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).
Published sub-criteria (3)
- Quality: 90%
- Supplier Incentive Programme: 3%
- Social Value: 7%
Published award criteria (3)
- Quality
- Social Value
- Supplier Incentive Programme
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
- Closed
- 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
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 12 Feb 2026, 10:40 GMT
- Last source update
- 30 Jul 2026, 13:06 BST
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 12 Nov 2026
- Authority reference
PB2025-00199- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-072164- Latest notice
- Tender notice (UK4)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-064eadFind a Tender
How it was run
Official notice- Submission deadline
- 7 Sept 2026, 12:00 BST
- Clarification deadline
- 21 Aug 2026, 12:00 BST
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
Bids must be submitted electronically via the Open system: www.open.org ↗
The Council communicates through the Open system; therefore, all correspondence regarding this Bid will be issued to the individual that expressed interest on Open. It is the Supplier's responsibility to ensure the correct named person is, and continues to be, registered on the Open system.
If you require time-critical assistance on submitting your response, please contact the Open Support Team [email protected]
For non-time critical issues, such as passwords, general account queries and location of information please visit Open hub via www.open-hub.org/how-to-guides/ ↗ or seek support from [email protected]
PLEASE NOTE: The system is accessible 24/7 however, technical support is only available Monday - Thursday 8:30am-5:00pm, Friday - 8:30am-4:30pm
Timeline
12 Feb 2026 → 1 Jan 2027 · 8 dates- Planning notice published257 days ago12 Feb 2026, 10:40 GMT
- Market engagement241 days ago27 Feb 2026, 23:59 GMT
The pre-market engagement include a survey to gather feedback from providers.
- Next notice expected207 days ago2 Apr 2026, 23:59 BST
- Tender notice published89 days ago30 Jul 2026, 13:06 BST
- Clarification questions by67 days ago21 Aug 2026, 12:00 BST
- Submission deadline50 days ago7 Sept 2026, 12:00 BST
- Today27 Oct 2026
- Award decision expected byin 16 days12 Nov 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Contract startsin 65 days1 Jan 2027
Notice history
6 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 12 Feb 2026- Preliminary market engagement notice published12 Feb 2026, 10:40 GMTUK2
- Tender notice published30 Jul 2026, 13:06 BSTUK4
- Published value published: £726,00030 Jul 2026, 13:06 BST
- Status changed to active30 Jul 2026, 13:06 BST
- Procurement method changed30 Jul 2026, 13:06 BST
- Deadline published: 7 Sept 2026, 12:00 BST30 Jul 2026, 13:06 BST
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Official documents & specifications (2)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender
- Preliminary market engagement notice Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender