SS15 48 Disabled Children Specialist Day Holiday and Weekend Short Breaks for 8-15 years.

Descriptions

Background Kent County Council (the Council) is the largest county council in England covering an area of 3 500 km². It has an annual expenditure of over 900 000 000 GBP on goods and services and a population of 1 300 000. The Council provides a wide range of personal and strategic services on behalf of its residents operating in partnership with 12 district Councils and 289 parish/town Councils.The Opportunity Kent County Council is seeking tenders from suitably experienced contractors who can deliver specialist holiday and weekend short break services across our 12 districts of Kent for disabled children and young people aged 8-15 years with severe and complex needs. These specialist holiday and weekend short break services are crucial in supporting vulnerable people in Kent and meets Kent County Council statutory duty under the Breaks for Carers of Disabled Children 2011 regulation.The aim is to provide short break services for parents/carers of disabled children and young people. Prospective contractor(s) will be required to deliver a wide range of daytime specialist holidays over the school holiday period and daytime weekend short breaks over the school term-time period. This procurement requirement has been lotted into 12 geographical areas, where the council require the services to be delivered from:1. Dartford.2. Gravesham.3. Sevenoaks.4. Tonbridge and Malling.5. Tunbridge.6. Maidstone.7. Ashford.8. Shepway.9. Dover.10. Canterbury.11. Thanet.12. Swale.The expectation is for the new service to commence on 1.4.2016 for a period of 24 months with a potential for up to two 12 months contract extensions. Further background and technical information will be made available within the tender documentation which will be released on Tuesday 10.11.2015.A tender workshop event will be held on Thursday 12.11.2015 which will provide prospective tenderers the opportunity to raise questions on the procurement process.All of these questions will be recorded and published to all bidders after the event. The venue for the workshop will be confirmed once places have been booked through the Kent business portal.Expression of Interest and Tender Process Expressions of interest will only be accepted via the Kent Business Portal. In order to submit your interest in this opportunity please select the ‘Login and Express an Interest’ button located at the bottom of this page.Note that in order to successfully submit your interest you will first need to register for an account. After registration is complete and you've received your login details you should return to the advert for the opportunity and express your interest. You will then be emailed an invitation to submit a tender. Further guidance regarding how to use this portal can be found attached to the bottom of this advert.Indicative Procurement Timetable.Publication of ITT Documentation on the Kent Business Portal on Tuesday 10.11.2015;Provider tender workshop on Thursday 12.11.2015;Deadline to submit requests for clarification via the Pro Contract Discussion facility: 12:00 noon on Thursday 3 .12.2015;Deadline for Tender Responses: 12:00 noon on Thursday 10.12.2015;Commencement of Tender Evaluation Period (including Post-Tender Clarification): w/c from Monday 14.12.2015;Pre-Award Clarification Meeting: w/c Monday 4.1.2016 (date TBC with preferred Provider(s); Publication of Decision to Award: w/c Monday 18.1.2016;Standstill Period: end date anticipated Friday 29.1.2016;Contract Award: w/c Monday 1.2.2016;Issue Contract documentation for signature: w/c Monday 8.2.2016;Contract Commencement Date: The contract commencement date will be agreed with the Council's preferred Provider(s).Questions and Communication.Please direct all questions and communication through the Kent Business Portal via the discussions facility. Further guidance can be can be found within the guide located at the bottom of this page.