Regional Care Co-operatives Pathfinder Delivery Partner

This PIN is for market engagement only. It does not signify the commencement of any procurement process and does not constitute any commitment by the Department for Education. If the Department for Education decides to commence any procurement process as contemplated by this notice, a separate notice will be published at the relevant time. The requirements and values set out below may be subject to change.

Regional Care Co-operative (RCC) pathfinders will be delivered in partnership with Local Authorities in two regions to test a new approach to planning, delivering and commissioning placements for looked after children. A co-design process with Local Authorities will shape the exact model and approach taken in each region; on a national level we will convene an expert advisory group to provide specialist insight and expertise on areas including governance, funding flows and data/forecasting.

We will be holding an initial early market engagement session to talk about the service requirements and seek feedback via 45-minute 1-2-1 meetings on 17th and 20th April.

A question and answer log will be circulated after all sessions have taken place via the DFE's commercial Jaggaer system.

To confirm your attendance please email [email protected].

In response to local authorities experiencing significant and widespread problems with finding homes for the children in their care (in children's homes and foster care), the Department for Education has announced its intention to introduce Regional Care Co-operatives (RCCs) through which local authorities will plan, deliver and commission placements on a regional, collective basis. We will test this approach with groups of local authorities in two regions and are looking for a delivery partner to support the delivery of the pathfinders. This will include supporting and advising on effective working relationships between local authorities, support with facilitating the co-design of the pathfinders in partnership with local authorities, commercial and legal establishment of the pathfinders, project management, governance and oversight, HR and recruitment, finances and allocation of funding, IT and data systems. Further information about Regional Care Co-operatives can be found here: Children's social care: stable homes, built on love - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) We plan to commence procurement in late April, with a view to the contract beginning in June. The pathfinders are due to launch in Spring 2024; the contract will continue until this date with potential for extension. If more than two areas express a serious interest in being a pathfinder, we will select the successful regions based on criteria including: closest fit to the intended model, size of region/number of LAC, likelihood of being able to set this up within 12-15 months (based on strength of existing partnerships, LA capacity, links to health / youth justice etc) and innovation.