Official UK procurement notice
Employment Readiness and Progression Support Service - Portsmouth 2026
Authority: Portsmouth City Council (Local council)
Portsmouth City Council ('the Council') is inviting tenders from suitably qualified Providers to provide a specialist Employment Readiness and Progression Support Service for adults aged 18 and over who have a learning disability and/or are autistic or self-identify as neurodivergent. The Contract will commence on 1 April 2027 for an initial term of two years. The Council may, at its sole discretion, extend the Contract for one or more further periods, provided that the total Contract term does not exceed five years from the Contract Commencement Date. The Council has identified an indicative budget of approximately £80,000 per annum excluding VAT for delivery of the Service and is seeking proposals that demonstrate how the best possible outcomes can be achieved within the available funding. The successful Provider will be required to deliver the Services in accordance with the Contract, Specification, submitted Tender and any agreed mobilisation arrangements.
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionPortsmouth City Council ('the Council') is inviting tenders from suitably qualified Providers to provide a specialist Employment Readiness and Progression Support Service for adults aged 18 and over who have a learning disability and/or are autistic or self-identify as neurodivergent.
The Contract will commence on 1 April 2027 for an initial term of two years. The Council may, at its sole discretion, extend the Contract for one or more further periods, provided that the total Contract term does not exceed five years from the Contract Commencement Date.
The Council has identified an indicative budget of approximately £80,000 per annum excluding VAT for delivery of the Service and is seeking proposals that demonstrate how the best possible outcomes can be achieved within the available funding.
The successful Provider will be required to deliver the Services in accordance with the Contract, Specification, submitted Tender and any agreed mobilisation arrangements.
Background information
The Council currently commissions a specialist employment support service for adults with a learning disability. Through service review, preliminary market engagement and wider employment pathway development work, the Council has identified an opportunity to remodel the service to create a clearer progression route towards employment for adults with a learning disability and autistic and neurodivergent adults.
The Council recognises that many individuals who aspire to paid employment require additional support before they are ready to engage successfully with employment-focused programmes. People may require support to build confidence, independence, work-related routines, practical skills, travel confidence, workplace understanding and relevant experience before progressing towards employment opportunities.
The employment support landscape has also evolved through the introduction and expansion of programmes such as Connect to Work. The Council considers that specialist work-readiness support and employment-placement support perform distinct functions within an individual's employment journey and can be most effective when delivered as part of a coordinated pathway.
The recommissioned service therefore represents a shift towards a dedicated Employment Readiness and Progression Support Service. The Council's objective is to establish a service that helps individuals identify and overcome barriers to employment, develop skills and confidence, access meaningful development opportunities and progress towards paid employment through appropriate pathways and partnerships.
The Council also wishes to strengthen co-production, employer engagement and partnership working to improve employment opportunities and outcomes for people with learning disabilities and autistic and neurodivergent adults. The successful Provider will play a key role in supporting this ambition through collaborative working with individuals, employers, stakeholders and partner organisations.
Specification
The Council is seeking a Provider to deliver a specialist Employment Readiness and Progression Support Service for adults aged 18 and over who have a learning disability and/or are autistic or self-identify as neurodivergent. The service is intended for individuals who aspire to paid employment but who require additional support to develop their readiness for employment and progression towards appropriate employment opportunities.
The successful Provider will deliver an accessible, strengths-based and person-centred service that supports individuals to identify aspirations, understand and overcome barriers, develop practical skills and confidence, and progress towards meaningful employment outcomes.
The primary purpose of the service is to prepare individuals for progression towards employment through personalised work-readiness support, skills development, employer engagement and structured progression planning.
The successful Provider will be expected to:
- undertake strengths-based assessments and develop co-produced employment readiness and progression plans
- provide tailored individual and group-based support
- support confidence building, independence, communication, workplace behaviours, travel skills, routine development and self-advocacy
- facilitate access to volunteering, work experience, work tasters, workplace visits and other purposeful development opportunities
- develop and maintain relationships with employers and promote inclusive employment opportunities
- support individuals to identify and address barriers that may affect progression towards employment
- support the appropriate use of Personal Budgets, Direct Payments and Individual Service Funds where additional support is required to help achieve employment-related outcomes
- establish effective referral, progression and transition arrangements with Connect to Work and other relevant services
- embed co-production and lived experience in the design, delivery, review and continuous improvement of the service
- collect and report performance and outcome information in accordance with the Specification
A key objective of the service is to increase access to employment-related opportunities through effective employer engagement, partnership working and progression planning. The Provider will be expected to work collaboratively with employers, community organisations and relevant stakeholders to support sustainable progression towards employment.
The successful Provider will also be required to mobilise the service prior to the Contract Commencement Date. Mobilisation activities are expected to include implementation planning, stakeholder engagement, referral pathway development, workforce mobilisation, governance arrangements, performance reporting arrangements and any other activities necessary to ensure the service is fully operational from the commencement date.
The Service must be delivered in accordance with the core service principles set out within the Specification, including strengths-based practice, person-centred support, co-production, inclusion and progression towards meaningful employment outcomes.
As the remodelled service differs materially from the current service model, the Provider will be required to establish baseline information relating to demand, activity, outcomes, employer engagement and service performance during the first contract year. This information will inform the future development of contractual Key Performance Indicators and associated targets.
Full details of the service requirements are set out within the Specification.
The Council has identified an indicative core service budget of £80,000 per annum excluding VAT for delivery of the Services. In addition, the Council has identified an indicative allowance of £8,000 per annum excluding VAT for expenditure through Personal Budgets and/or Individual Service Funds to support employment-related outcomes in accordance with the Specification.
For procurement planning, tendering and evaluation purposes, the maximum total value of the Contract, including the Initial Contract Term and all available Extension Periods, is £467,203.95 exclusive of VAT. This value has been calculated using:
- an indicative annual core service value of £80,000 in Contract Year 1;
- an indicative annual Personal Budget and Individual Service Fund allowance of £8,000 in Contract Year 1;
- an illustrative annual uplift of 3% in each subsequent Contract Year; and
- the assumption that the Initial Contract Term and all available Extension Periods are exercised.
The Maximum Total Value stated above has been calculated solely for procurement planning, tendering and evaluation purposes. The Council acknowledges that actual expenditure during the Contract term may differ from these estimates. In particular, actual inflationary adjustments, approved expenditure through Personal Budgets or Individual Service Funds, changes in service demand, funding arrangements or other operational requirements may result in the total Contract expenditure exceeding the Maximum Total Value stated above.
Contract Duration
The contract will commence on 1 April 2027 and will have an initial term of two years.
Subject to satisfactory performance, continued service need and the availability of funding, following expiry of the initial term, the Council may, at its sole discretion, extend the Contract for one or more further periods, provided that the total Contract term does not exceed five (5) years from the Contract Commencement Date.
TUPE
The Council considers it likely that the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 ("TUPE") will apply to the Services. However, it is the responsibility of each Provider to obtain its own legal advice and satisfy itself as to the applicability and potential implications of TUPE.
The Council will make available any TUPE information it holds, subject to the Provider first entering into a Non-Disclosure Agreement ("NDA"). Any information provided pursuant to the NDA must be treated as confidential and used solely for the purposes of preparing and submitting a Tender.
Procurement Procedure and programme
The Council is conducting a competitive procurement process for this below-threshold contract.
This procurement timetable is indicative and, while the council does not intend to depart from it, it reserves the right to do so at any time.
Contract notice published on FTS - 5 November 2026
Procurement documents available on In-tend - 5 November 2026
Deadline for requests for clarification - 26 November 2026 @ 17:00
Tender return deadline - 3 December 2026 @ 17:00
Evaluation of tenders completed - 15 January 2027
Notify Providers of the outcome and issue evaluation feedback - 21 January 2027
Contract award - 22 January 2027
Mobilisation - 23 January 2027 to 31 March 2027
Start of Contract - 1 April 2027
CPV: Health and social work services · Job search services
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedLot #1RenewalPublished value£470,000
- Condition of participation
Central Digital Platform
Providers are required to register on the Central Digital Platform and upload and/or check that their core Provider information on the Central Digital Platform relating to their company information, Mandatory and Discretionary Exclusions, Connected Persons, and economic and financial standing is all up to date and accurate at the point of submitting a Tender Response. Where relevant, Providers will also need to provide information concerning Associated Persons and intended Sub-contractors.
Should there be any inconsistency between this information and the information as submitted in response to this Procurement, the Provider will need to provide evidence as to the accuracy of their submission and failure to do so could result in the Provider being excluded for Improper Behaviour.
Tender evaluation principles
The evaluation of responses takes place in two stages:
- Evaluation of exclusion information and the minimum Provider requirements set out in the Procurement Specific Questionnaire will take place first. Only Providers that satisfy those requirements will proceed to evaluation of the Quality Assessment Questions and Pricing.
- Evaluation of award criteria takes place second and comprises evaluation of the responses to the Quality Assessment Questions (QAQ) and Pricing.
Where a Provider has satisfied the minimum requirements within the PSQ, their responses to the Quality Assessment Questions (QAQ) will then be evaluated against the following award criteria:
Quality 70%
Price 30%
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 (2)
- Quality: 70%
- Cost: 30%
Published award criteria (2)
- Quality: 1. Mobilisation and Service Implementation 5% 2. Workforce Capability and Specialist Knowledge 10% 3. Person-Centred Support, Progression and Outcomes 3a. Case Study 1 - 'Sarah' 7.5% - sub weighting 3b. Case Study 2 - 'Michael' 7.5% - sub weighting 4. Service User Pathway and Personalised Support 12% 5. Developing Opportunities and Overcoming Barriers 10% 6. Partnership Working, Progression and Transitions 10% 7. Performance, Learning and Service Improvement 8%
- Cost
- Condition of participation
Central Digital Platform
Providers are required to register on the Central Digital Platform and upload and/or check that their core Provider information on the Central Digital Platform relating to their company information, Mandatory and Discretionary Exclusions, Connected Persons, and economic and financial standing is all up to date and accurate at the point of submitting a Tender Response. Where relevant, Providers will also need to provide information concerning Associated Persons and intended Sub-contractors.
Should there be any inconsistency between this information and the information as submitted in response to this Procurement, the Provider will need to provide evidence as to the accuracy of their submission and failure to do so could result in the Provider being excluded for Improper Behaviour.
Tender evaluation principles
The evaluation of responses takes place in two stages:
- Evaluation of exclusion information and the minimum Provider requirements set out in the Procurement Specific Questionnaire will take place first. Only Providers that satisfy those requirements will proceed to evaluation of the Quality Assessment Questions and Pricing.
- Evaluation of award criteria takes place second and comprises evaluation of the responses to the Quality Assessment Questions (QAQ) and Pricing.
Where a Provider has satisfied the minimum requirements within the PSQ, their responses to the Quality Assessment Questions (QAQ) will then be evaluated against the following award…
- Price carries 30 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 3 points. The method statement decides this lot, not the discount.
- Turnover usually expected at this size: about £469,357 (twice the annual value).
Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula. Turnover is an indicative market norm (≈2× annual value), not a published condition.
Competition analysis · published record, not a forecast of who will bid
How Portsmouth City Council buys Placement services of personnel (CPV 7961), and who usually turns up
Portsmouth City Council’s published record next to the market for the same work. Frameworks and DPS are left out: they draw different bid counts. Whole-market view: Placement services of personnel (CPV 7961) →
How the contest usually goes
Winner shares use published awards; bid and price charts use contested lots.
i
How often small and medium firms win.
Share of awards where the winner’s size is known.
The counts under this question show how many awards have a known supplier size.
Small firms have won here. Neither number says whether you qualify; it describes who has been winning.
i
How often local firms win similar work.
Winners with a registered address in the delivery region, out of awards with a known address.
Local means the winner is registered in the region where that award was delivered.
A local branch does not count if the registered address is elsewhere.
Most of this buyer’s recorded winners were registered outside the region where that award was delivered.
i
How long buyers here take to decide after bids close.
Middle value in days from the bid deadline to the award date, on competitions that published both.
Only decided tenders count, so slow ones still waiting are not in.
Half of these awards have an award date within 46 days of the bid deadline.
i
How often work is awarded with no recorded rival.
Direct awards and tenders where every published lot count shows one bid.
Both shares are minimums: some awards have no bid count.
Thin markets produce this too; it is not proof of a tailored specification.
Missing bid counts may hide more single-bid awards. This share is a minimum.
How many bids did past lots attract?
i
How many bids past lots received.
Each colour is a bid-count range. Only competed lots with a published count are included.
Past bids do not predict this tender.
1 bid24% / 3%
2–343% / 26%
4–629% / 31%
7+5% / 40%
How did awards compare with estimates?
i
Where winning prices landed against estimates.
Each colour shows awards below, close to or above the published estimate, one lot at a time.
Past prices are a guide, not a bid price.
Below estimate25% / 30%
Within ±2%75% / 70%
Above estimate0% / 0%
Assess each lot i
What past awards tell you about each lot.
See the forecast, this buyer’s earlier suppliers and firms with relevant wins.
No supplier is confirmed as a bidder.
i
What past awards tell you about each lot.
See the forecast, this buyer’s earlier suppliers and firms with relevant wins.
No supplier is confirmed as a bidder.
Open a lot for its forecast, this buyer’s previous supplier and possible competitors, from published award history, not a bid list
Lot #1CPV 7961Published estimate£470k
i
How many bids this lot may attract.
The forecast uses similar past competitions. The bar shows either that forecast or past bid counts; the line below says which.
Each lot shows its own forecast based on its own category; forecasts for different lots of the same notice are not comparative.
A forecast, not a list of bidders.
1 bid6%
2–340%
4–644%
7+10%
i
Where the award price may land.
The forecast uses similar awards and the buyer’s estimate. The band covers the middle half of likely prices.
Based on 1 comparable award. Each lot reflects its own category; forecasts for different lots of the same notice are not comparative.
A statistical guide from past awards, not a price to bid.
Middle 50%£423k–£470k
Estimate£470k
Who has supplied this buyer on similar work? i
Who has done similar work for this buyer.
Past contracts are matched by buyer, title and type of work.
A past supplier may not bid again.
i
Who has done similar work for this buyer.
Past contracts are matched by buyer, title and type of work.
A past supplier may not bid again.
No earlier contract of this buyer matches this lot on the published record.
Who could compete for this lot? i
Who could compete for this lot?
Firms with relevant past wins. On a framework, we show firms on that agreement.
None is confirmed as a bidder.
i
Who could compete for this lot?
Firms with relevant past wins. On a framework, we show firms on that agreement.
None is confirmed as a bidder.
| Supplier | Won in this category | Live contracts | Award vs estimate |
|---|---|---|---|
Ingeus UK LimitedLarge | £81m15 awards in 36m · last 2 months ago | 9 live · £1.9bn iPublic contracts this supplier still holds. Its awards whose published end date is still in the future, with their values. Many contracts publish no end date, so this is a floor, not the whole book. Unexpired says nothing about spare capacity. | at estimate n=9 |
| £32m12 awards in 36m · last 2 months ago | 1 live · £20m iPublic contracts this supplier still holds. Its awards whose published end date is still in the future, with their values. Many contracts publish no end date, so this is a floor, not the whole book. Unexpired says nothing about spare capacity. | 6% below n=2 | |
| £11m40 awards in 36m · last 1 month ago | 14 live · £23m iPublic contracts this supplier still holds. Its awards whose published end date is still in the future, with their values. Many contracts publish no end date, so this is a floor, not the whole book. Unexpired says nothing about spare capacity. | 10% below n=5 | |
| £97m21 awards in 36m · last 5 months ago | 5 live · £13m iPublic contracts this supplier still holds. Its awards whose published end date is still in the future, with their values. Many contracts publish no end date, so this is a floor, not the whole book. Unexpired says nothing about spare capacity. | 13% below n=15 | |
| £16m7 awards in 36m · last 3 months ago | 3 live · £7.9m iPublic contracts this supplier still holds. Its awards whose published end date is still in the future, with their values. Many contracts publish no end date, so this is a floor, not the whole book. Unexpired says nothing about spare capacity. | at estimate n=3 |
About this data
- Source. Official UK public procurement notices (Find a Tender), reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0. New notices arrive through the day; the figures are rebuilt nightly. Contracts Finder contracts appear on the Retender Radar, not yet in these figures.
- Two views, kept apart. The authority’s own track record and the wider market for the same kind of work sit side by side and are never mixed. Where the local picture is too thin, a figure widens to a broader market and says which one it used.
- Forecasts are labelled. The price forecast and its range, possible competitors and the earlier-work matches are our estimates from past awards: not published facts, not win chances and not price advice. Official notices do not say who is bidding.
- Every figure shows what it rests on. Not every notice publishes a bid count, a value or a delivery region, so each figure carries the number of records behind it, and one built on few records is marked as such. The on a figure explains it; the counting rules are in the methodology. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Procedure method
- Below threshold - open competition
- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Services
- Notice status
- Open for tender
- Procurement threshold
- Below threshold
- 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
- 5 Nov 2026, 14:04 GMT
- Last source update
- 5 Nov 2026, 14:04 GMT
- Authority reference
P00005271- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-105240- Latest notice
- Tender notice (UK4)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-07b558Find a Tender
How to participate & submission route
Official notice Submit via In-tend- Requests to participate (first stage)
- —
- Tender submission deadline
- 3 Dec 2026, 17:00 GMT
- Clarification deadline
- 26 Nov 2026, 17:00 GMT
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
Timeline
5 Nov 2026 → 1 Apr 2027 · 4 dates- Tender notice published14h ago5 Nov 2026, 14:04 GMT
- Today6 Nov 2026
- Clarification questions byin 20 days26 Nov 2026, 17:00 GMT
- Submission deadlinein 27 days3 Dec 2026, 17:00 GMT
- Contract startsin 145 days1 Apr 2027, 00:00 BST
Notice history
1 event · 1 release on Find a Tender- Tender notice published5 Nov 2026, 14:04 GMTUK4
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Nothing awarded yet- Awards (0)
- No award published
- Contracts (0)
- No contract published
- Bid statistics
- No aggregate bid statistics published
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Official documents & specifications (1)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender