Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) Support

Essex County Council ("the Council") is seeking to commission a new Voluntary and Community Sector support service as part of a wider offer to strengthen and champion a thriving and influential voluntary and community sector within the administrative boundaries of Essex (excluding the unitary authority areas of Thurrock and Southend-on-Sea). In addition, this service will also be open to the following classification of users: NHS Healthcare (including Integrated Care Systems) both within the administrative boundaries of Essex and cross-boundary organisations.\r This procurement will incorporate the following lots: \r Lot 1: Universal Standard Support Offer (USSO)\r Lot 2: Community Participation\r Prospective bidders are advised that the full details regarding the Council's requirements for each of these lots can be found within the relevant service specification which will be published on the Council's e-tendering portal, ProContract and can be accessed via:\r https://procontract.due-north.com/ \r Please register for a user account to gain access to the procurement documentation for this opportunity. The Council envisages that this procurement will be published on the aforementioned e-sourcing portal on Friday 26th July 2024.\r The proposed contract commencement date for both lots is 1st December 2024 until 31st March 2031 with a break clause at 31st March 2028. Please note that the maximum duration amounts to 75 months and 30 days. However, due to the constraints with the fields in this notice, this position has been rounded up to the nearest month. The stated budget for this service is based on £75,000 for the initial four (4) months per lot and £75,000 p.a. for each subsequent year of the contracts per lot. In addition, the Council understands that there may be scope for additional funding of up to 15%, although this matter remains subject to confirmation during the post-tender phase of the project.\r