Sexual Assault and Abuse Therapy Service in Swindon and Wiltshire

Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire Integrated Care Board sought to commission a Sexual Assault and Abuse Therapy Service to deliver high quality specialist counselling for children and young people and adults residing in Swindon and Wiltshire who have experienced historical or recent sexual abuse. The commissioner sought an experienced provider to deliver an innovative and effective service that will promote and protect the mental health of survivors of rape and/or sexual abuse that occurred at any time in their lives through the provision of therapeutic interventions that responds to complex trauma and diverse needs. The aims and objectives include but not limited to: • Provide a range of therapeutic interventions to respond to diverse needs and presentations of children, young people and adults, including those with complex trauma and learning disabilities. This may also include for example befriending, peer support, psychoeducation, brief interventions, creative therapies, counselling, EMDR. • Provide group sessions to develop a range of self-help tools, which could include mindfulness, grounding, managing triggers. flashbacks and nightmares, communication skills, psychoeducation around the impact of trauma. • When there is sufficient demand, to offer specific pre-counselling groups such as LGBT+ and students. • Flexible, timely and responsive services which can fluctuate to changes in demand. At times, individuals may not be ready to engage in therapeutic interventions and services will need to respond and ensure contact is maintained with the individual pending their agreement to engage. • Use of a 'trauma lens' - trauma informed approaches integrated into organisational policy and practice. • Choice of gender of therapist (wherever possible). • The number of trauma-focused one-to-one counselling sessions agreed and reviewed reflecting rate of progression and response to therapy. • Missed sessions not to be an indicator for discharge without discussion with service user. • Provision of services within dedicated premises and via remote platforms (by telephone or online), according to service user preference. • Ensure planned endings of therapy by assessing readiness, acknowledging the relationship and service user's resilience to prevent dependencies on service. • Service should be provided regardless of involvement (or not) in a criminal justice process The contract has been awarded to FearLess. The contract term will be 6 years, with a total contract value of £1,310,956.69. Commissioners reserve the right to add funding to the contract over its duration to accommodate service development measures or initiatives, up to an equivalent value of the original contract. For the avoidance of doubt, this would mean an annual contract value of, for example, £440k per annum and a consequent increase in the overall contract value. The new service is due to commence on 1st October 2023. This procurement has been carried out by NHS South, Central and West Commissioning Support Unit (SCW) on behalf of the Commissioner(s). The project reference number for this opportunity is C120485, (previously C99873). Additional information: The services are healthcare services falling within Schedule 3 to the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 ("the Regulations") which are not subject to the full regime of the Regulations, but are instead governed by the "Light Touch Regime" contained within Chapter 3, Section 7 of the Regulations (Regulations 74 to 77).