Development of a continuous professional development programme for child and family social workers.

We are tendering for a supplier to develop a Continuous Professional Development (CPD) programme for child and family social workers. The contract with the supplier will commence in February 2017. In mid-2017 we propose to further tender for a number of suppliers to deliver the programme.

The Department made a commitment in Adoption, A Vision for Change (March 2016) to develop a CPD programme for child and family social workers involved in identifying and securing permanence arrangements for children who are looked after or on the edge of care. The CPD programme will enable social workers to develop the knowledge and skills they need to successfully undertake the complex assessment, analysis and permanence decision making we require of them, and to progress permanence plans with urgency and skill. The Department has drafted a knowledge and skills statement for achieving permanence which sets out what social workers need to know and be able to do when involved in permanence planning. This statement will shape the content of the CPD programme. We consulted on the knowledge and skills statement over the summer, and our Government response, including an updated knowledge and skills statement, was published on 18th November at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/knowledge-and-skills-statement-for-achieving-permanence.

We want the CPD programme to be a kite-marked course that includes some sort of test and certification. It will not be compulsory and will not be accredited. Our aim is for a CPD programme that is attractive to social workers and that their employers want them to do. We want to ensure that the programme is sustainable and makes a positive difference in the short and long-term practice of the social workers who attend.

The role of the supplier will be to define target audience needs and design the content and delivery mechanism of the CPD programme. The supplier will need to work with the Department for Education, organisations involved in permanence planning, and with the delivery organisations to support their understanding of the programme. The supplier may also be required to complete work to refine the programme following an independent evaluation.

Additional information: This procurement is being run through Redimo2, the eProcurement system for the department. Bidders will need to register on Redimo2 at: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-education/about/procurement#redimo2 and are encouraged to so in advance of the tender being published.

Please note registration is a multi-stage process, please follow the guidance and ensure you allow sufficient time to complete the registration process and contact: [email protected] if you have any queries regarding registering on Redimo2.

The contract end date is based upon having the contracts in place for delivery, therefore there is potential for the end date to extend for a limited period beyond 31 August 2017 to all for effective hand-over to those delivery organisations. There is also the option to extend for an additional month in 2018-19 to undertake any amendments to the programme recommended as part of an independent evaluation of the programme.

Estimated value is £300,000 with the possibility of an extra £50,000 for refinement following evaluation.