Official UK procurement notice
All-Age Independent Advocacy Service
Authority: Cornwall Council (Local council)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionCornwall Council is inviting tenders for the delivery of an All-Age Independent Advocacy Service across Cornwall and statutory adult advocacy provision for the Isles of Scilly.
The Service will provide coordinated, accessible and rights-based independent advocacy for children, young people, adults and eligible parents across health, social care, children’s social care and community settings. The Service will support people to understand and exercise their rights, express their views, wishes, feelings and desired outcomes, participate meaningfully and seek appropriate representation or challenge in decisions that affect their lives.
The Service will comprise:
- Advocacy Hub and single point of access;
- Adults Statutory Advocacy;
- Children and Young People's Advocacy, Independent Visiting and Parents' Advocacy; and
- Community, General and Specialist Advocacy.
The Service will be commissioned through a single contract and delivered as an integrated all-age advocacy model.
The estimated total value of the Contract over the maximum six-year term is approximately £6,416,447.
The Contract will commence on 01 April 2027.
CPV: Health and social work services
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedLot #1RenewalPublished value£6,416,447
- Economic & financial standing
Suppliers must demonstrate sufficient economic and financial standing to deliver the Contract in accordance with the requirements set out in the Procurement Specific Questionnaire.
- Technical & professional ability
Suppliers must demonstrate relevant experience of delivering advocacy services of a similar size, scale and complexity, together with the capability to deliver statutory and non-statutory advocacy services in accordance with the Specification. Suppliers must also demonstrate appropriate arrangements relating to data protection, safeguarding, equality and diversity, health and safety, advocacy quality standards and modern slavery requirements.
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 award criteria (3)
- Quality: Evaluation of the Supplier's response to the Quality Questions and Quality Presentation in accordance with the Invitation to Tender.
- Price: Evaluation of the completed Price Evaluation Schedule and Written Pricing Justification.
- Social Value: Evaluation of the Supplier's Social Value commitments and delivery proposals.
- Economic & financial standing
Suppliers must demonstrate sufficient economic and financial standing to deliver the Contract in accordance with the requirements set out in the Procurement Specific Questionnaire.
- Technical & professional ability
Suppliers must demonstrate relevant experience of delivering advocacy services of a similar size, scale and complexity, together with the capability to deliver statutory and non-statutory advocacy services in accordance with the Specification. Suppliers must also demonstrate appropriate arrangements relating to data protection, safeguarding, equality and diversity, health and safety, advocacy quality standards and modern slavery requirements.
- Price carries 25 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 2.5 points. The method statement decides this lot, not the discount.
- Turnover usually expected at this size: about £4,273,728 (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 Cornwall Council buys Health and social work services (CPV 85), and who usually turns up
Cornwall Council’s own published record, next to the published market for the same work. Frameworks and DPS are kept out: they attract a different number of bids. Whole-market view: Health and social work services (CPV 85) →
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. Small firms win more of this buyer’s work than the market’s: 81% against 41%, n=53.
i
How often local firms win similar work.
Winners with a registered address in the delivery region, out of awards with a known address.
Here, local means registered in South West England.
A local branch does not count if the registered address is elsewhere.
Most of this buyer’s recorded winners are registered in South West England. More of this buyer’s work stays local than in this market: 91% against 55%, n=75.
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.
Only decided tenders count, so slow ones still waiting are not in.
Half of these awards were announced within 48 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.
Direct awards or one recorded bid are common here. Check the route before spending time on a bid.
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 bid21% / 25%
2–353% / 38%
4–65% / 21%
7+21% / 16%
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 estimate17% / 32%
Within ±2%83% / 63%
Above estimate0% / 5%
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 #1Published estimate£6.4m
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 bid17%
2–370%
4–68%
7+5%
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 163 comparable awards. 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%£6.1m–£6.4m
Estimate£6.4m
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
Barnardo'sLarge | £167m83 awards in 36m · last this month | 31 live · £87m 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=38 |
| £8.3m16 awards in 36m · last 1 months ago | 10 live · £2.8m 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=12 | |
Coram VoiceSME | £6.2m7 awards in 36m · last 2 months ago | 4 live · £3.0m 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=7 |
| £690m36 awards in 36m · last 2 months ago | 9 live · £270m 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=16 | |
| £7.8m12 awards in 36m · last 4 months ago | 4 live · £4.5m 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. | 3% below n=8 |
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.
- 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
- Open 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
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 13 Feb 2026, 13:28 GMT
- Last source update
- 1 Oct 2026, 16:41 BST
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 18 Jan 2027
- Authority reference
DN774644- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-093025- Latest notice
- Tender notice (UK4)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-0653f2Find a Tender- Contract terms summary
Invoices must be submitted in accordance with the Contract. The Council will pay valid undisputed invoices within 30 days of receipt.
- Risks
Contract performance risks include:
- workforce recruitment and retention challenges;
- service mobilisation and transition risks, including TUPE;
- maintaining specialist advocacy capability;
- safeguarding, information governance and data security requirements;
- changes in legislation, policy and advocacy duties;
- fluctuations in service demand; and
- maintaining the independence, accessibility and visibility of advocacy services.
How to participate & submission route
Official notice Submit via ProContract (Due North)- Requests to participate (first stage)
- —
- Tender submission deadline
- 12 Nov 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Clarification deadline
- 29 Oct 2026, 16:00 GMT
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
Tenders must be submitted electronically via the ProContract e-tendering portal.
Suppliers should submit all required Tender documents in accordance with the Invitation to Tender.
Timeline
13 Feb 2026 → 1 Apr 2027 · 8 dates- Planning notice published249 days ago13 Feb 2026, 13:28 GMT
- Market engagement172 days ago30 Apr 2026, 23:59 BST
Cornwall Council is undertaking further preliminary market engagement to inform the future commissioning approach for Independent Advocacy across Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. This phase of engagement includes a written Soft Market Test (SMT) and a series of market engagement events.
Suppliers are invited to review the SMT documentation, available via the ProContract procurement portal (Project DN774644), and submit written responses by 16:00 on Wednesday 11 March 2026. Written responses form a core part of this engagement process and will be used to understand market views on potential service models, collaborative approaches, lot structures and workforce considerations.
In addition to written submissions, the Council will host an in‑person market engagement event during the week commencing 16 March 2026, followed by two to three online workshops during March and April 2026. These events will provide opportunities for suppliers to discuss key themes arising from the SMT, share insights on feasible delivery models and explore partnership or consortia approaches. Details of how to book onto these sessions will be published through the ProContract portal.
Suppliers may participate in any or all parts of the engagement process. Participation is entirely voluntary and will not prejudice involvement in any future procurement. All information gathered through the SMT and events will be used solely to support the development of the Council’s Outline Business Case and to inform future commissioning decisions. This engagement is not a call for competition and does not commit the Council to any procurement procedure or contracting route.
- Next notice expected26 days ago23 Sept 2026, 23:59 BST
- Tender notice published19 days ago1 Oct 2026, 16:41 BST
- Today20 Oct 2026
- Clarification questions byin 9 days29 Oct 2026, 16:00 GMT
- Submission deadlinein 23 days12 Nov 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Award decision expected byin 91 days18 Jan 2027, 23:59 GMT
- Contract startsin 163 days1 Apr 2027, 00:00 BST
Notice history
6 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 13 Feb 2026- Preliminary market engagement notice published13 Feb 2026, 13:28 GMTUK2
- Tender notice published1 Oct 2026, 16:41 BSTUK4
- Published value updated to £6,416,4471 Oct 2026, 16:41 BSTwas £4,000,000
- Status changed to active1 Oct 2026, 16:41 BST
- Procurement method changed1 Oct 2026, 16:41 BST
- Deadline published: 12 Nov 2026, 12:00 GMT1 Oct 2026, 16:41 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
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