Official UK procurement notice
Preliminary Market Engagement for Homeline and Technology for Independence (T4I): Exploration of Future Service Delivery Options
Authority: Swindon Borough Council (Local council)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionSwindon Borough Council is exploring alternative delivery models for its Homeline Service (Homeline and Homeline Plus) and, for some options, the Technology for Independence (T4I) service. The purpose of this background is to provide suppliers with sufficient context to support meaningful and informed responses. The anticipated contract value is expected to exceed £3 million. The proposed contract duration is three (3) years, with the provision for up to three (3) optional one-year extensions at the Council’s discretion.
Where alternative delivery models are being considered, this may include models in which the provider is contracted and paid directly by the Council, as well as models where income is derived wholly or partly from charges paid by service users (for example, under a concession-style arrangement). Further detail is provided below to support suppliers in understanding the current charging approach and to inform responses relating to financial and commercial models.
Preliminary Market Engagement
This market engagement is intended to support and improve understanding of delivery models, feasibility, risks and indicative costs. Suppliers are asked to review the background information and complete the Supplier Questionnaire in full for any option(s) or functions they are able to deliver and to clearly state any functions they cannot deliver. This will help the council assess its options, such as whether to commission a whole single service, or to separate out some of the functions, or whether to allow consortium of bidders. Responses should be evidence-based where possible and include clear assumptions. Following submission, the Council may analyse themes across responses and may invite some suppliers to participate in optional follow-up clarification discussions to explore aspects of their responses in more depth. Any information obtained through these clarification discussions will be anonymised and shared in summary form with all participants to ensure transparency and equal access to information.
Participation in this process is voluntary and does not form part of a procurement process, nor does it create any obligation on the Council or on participating organisations. The information gathered will be used solely to inform future service planning.
To see full details about the Homeline and Technology for Independence (T4I) service please see the specification. This Preliminary Market Engagement exercise does not constitute a call for competition and does not commit the Council to any future procurement process. The information gathered will be used solely to inform service design and future commissioning considerations. The Council thanks suppliers in advance for their time and engagement.
DN807428
CPV: Health services · Miscellaneous services
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · no lot value publishedPipeline intelligence · planning stage: how this market runs before the tender is published
How Swindon Borough Council buys Health services (CPV 8510), and who usually turns up
Swindon Borough 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 services (CPV 8510) →
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.
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 outside South West England.
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 65 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 bid29% / 26%
2–314% / 42%
4–629% / 22%
7+29% / 10%
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%67% / 62%
Above estimate17% / 6%
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 8510Published estimate£3.0m
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. The bar shows 50 past lots.
A forecast, not a list of bidders.
1 bid26%
2–342%
4–622%
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.
No comparable awards for this lot yet.
A statistical guide from past awards, not a price to bid.
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.
Candidate suppliers for this notice have not been worked out yet, so this is not a verdict that nobody fits.
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- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Services
- Notice status
- Planned procurement
- 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
- 3 Mar 2026, 15:44 GMT
- Last source update
- 3 Mar 2026, 15:44 GMT
- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-019120- Latest notice
- Preliminary market engagement notice (UK2)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-066156Find a Tender
How it was run
Official notice- Submission deadline
- —
Timeline
3 Mar 2026 → 1 Mar 2027 · 4 dates- Planning notice published233 days ago3 Mar 2026, 15:44 GMT
- Market engagement204 days ago1 Apr 2026, 23:59 BST
Swindon Borough Council is the local authority for the Borough of Swindon in Wiltshire, responsible for delivering a wide range of public services including education, social care, housing, waste management, planning, highways and environmental services. Established as a unitary authority in 1997, the Council serves a population of over 200,000 residents and operates as a significant public-sector organisation and commissioner of services. Its strategic direction is guided by the Swindon Plan, which focuses on building a fairer, better and greener Swindon, with priorities centred on reducing inequality, supporting economic growth, improving outcomes for residents and addressing climate challenges. For more information on our plan please visit our website.
Swindon Borough Council is exploring alternative delivery models for its Homeline Service (Homeline and Homeline Plus) and, for some options, the Technology for Independence (T4I) service. The purpose of this background is to provide suppliers with sufficient context to support meaningful and informed responses to the soft market testing questions.
Preliminary Market Engagement
Swindon Borough Council invites supplier's to contribute to a preliminary market engagement in relation to the Homeline and Technology for Independence (T4I): Exploration of Future Service Delivery Options and would welcome views on the questions set out in the questionnaire. The intention is to invite supplier feedback to help shape the final specification and commercial model to ensure the tender delivers the optimum outcomes for the Council.
The anticipated total contract value is expected to exceed £3 million. The proposed contract duration is three (3) years, with the provision for up to three (3) optional one-year extensions at the Council’s discretion.
Responses should be evidence-based where possible and include clear assumptions. Following submission, the Council may analyse themes across responses and may invite some suppliers to optional follow-up clarification discussions to explore aspects of their responses in more depth. Participation in this process is voluntary and does not form part of a procurement process, nor does it create any obligation on the Council or on participating organisations. The information gathered will be used solely to inform future service planning. The closing date for response sand submission through the portal is 1 April 2026 at 15:00. The Council will host an optional supplier engagement event during the preliminary market engagement submission period. This event will provide interested suppliers with the opportunity to seek clarification on the background information and scope, and to ask questions to support informed and consistent responses.
The event will take place on 23 March 2026, from 10:00 am to 13:00pm, and is available for both in person (on Council premises) or virtual (Microsoft Teams) attendance. Further details for registration are included within the attachments.
To see full details about the Homeline and Technology for Independence (T4I) service please see the specification.
This Preliminary Market Engagement exercise does not constitute a call for competition and does not commit the Council to any future procurement process. The information gathered will be used solely to inform service design and future commissioning considerations.
The Council thanks suppliers in advance for their time and engagement.
DN807428
- Tender notice expected153 days ago22 May 2026, 23:59 BST
- Today22 Oct 2026
- Contract startsin 129 days1 Mar 2027
Notice history
1 event · 1 release on Find a Tender- Preliminary market engagement notice published3 Mar 2026, 15:44 GMTUK2
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Pipeline notice- 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
- Preliminary market engagement notice Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender