Contract notice
Section I: Contracting
authority
I.1) Name and addresses
Social Care Wales
South Gate House, Wood Street
Cardiff
CF10 1EW
UK
Telephone: +44 3003033444
E-mail: procurement@socialcare.wales
NUTS: UKL
Internet address(es)
Main address: http://www.socialcare.wales
Address of the buyer profile: https://www.sell2wales.gov.wales/search/Search_AuthProfile.aspx?ID=AA0289
I.2) Joint procurement
The contract is awarded by a central purchasing body
I.3) Communication
The procurement documents are available for unrestricted and full direct access, free of charge at:
https://www.sell2wales.gov.wales
Additional information can be obtained from the abovementioned address
Tenders or requests to participate must be sent electronically to:
https://www.sell2wales.gov.wales
Electronic communication requires the use of tools and devices that are not generally available. Unrestricted and full direct access to these tools and devices is possible, free of charge, at:
https://www.sell2wales.gov.wales
I.4) Type of the contracting authority
Other: Welsh Government Sponsored Body
I.5) Main activity
Social protection
Section II: Object
II.1) Scope of the procurement
II.1.1) Title
Building a research, innovation and improvement skills development approach for social care
II.1.2) Main CPV code
73000000
II.1.3) Type of contract
Services
II.1.4) Short description
Maximise the impact of our work we recognise the need to increase knowledge skills & experience in research, innovation & improvement. This project will identify the needs & solutions to supporting skills development in these key areas.
We require a supplier to help co-design an approach to capability & skills building in research, innovation & improvement for people working in social work & social care in Wales by:
using a discovery phase, to understand & synthesise the research we already have & look at existing frameworks & initiatives across research, innovation & improvement
using design & co-production principles to engage with people in creative & innovative ways to gain nuanced understanding of their needs
assessing how well existing learning & development opportunities meet the needs of people working in social care, including how well known they are & whether the content is relevant & easy to access & identifying gaps in current provision
recommending a number of tangible, action-focussed alpha projects designed to meet those needs
designing longer-term, overarching approach for research, innovation & improvement skills development.
Produce early prototypes & support us to test out agreed alpha projects, which might include:
Using & signposting to existing initiatives but implemented in new & creative ways
Adapting existing initiatives for Wales & for social care
Piloting new approaches e.g designing new learning & development opportunities
By working in social work & social care we mean:
A wide variety of people including social workers, social work students, social care workers, managers, leaders & commissioners
Working in a wide variety of settings including local authorities, provider organisations (both independent, third sector & local authority), as well as settings like health, education & the criminal justice system
Supporting children or adults
By skills we mean:
The skills people need to access, understand, use & generate research in their day-to-day work
the skills people would like to develop to take on bigger research projects &/or to pursue research careers
the skills people need to innovate in their day-to-day work & to support innovation in social care
the skills people need to continuously reflect on, improve & develop their work
The aim of this project is to inform the way Social Care Wales & Health & Care Research Wales support the development of research, innovation & improvement skills across social care in Wales.
We want partnership & collaboration to be at the heart of what we design as we know that linkages enhance research capacity & capability. We want to reuse, reimagine & embed existing learning & development opportunities wherever we can.
We’ll use the output of the project to pilot, test & implement support for research, innovation & improvement. We recognise that social care is complex & that there is no single response that will meet all workforce needs, but we anticipate that support could include:
learning for research, innovation & improvement practice, for example, small scale capacity building programmes focused on the social care workplace
schemes designed to develop formal skills & careers, for example, funding postgraduate degrees
other creative ways of developing skills, for example, apprenticeships, coaching & mentoring, peer support.
We have an opportunity to take a creative & sustainable approach, which uses our existing learning. We anticipate that the first stage of the project will be to understand what we already know. We’re also keen to learn from social care capacity-building projects elsewhere.
Most importantly, we want to focus on actions which will deliver better outcomes for people who use care& support in Wales. Our core goal is to make sure research, innovation& improvement count by supporting them to happen in practice. The IMPACT Evaluation of the Social Services & Wellbeing Act has shown the gap between the rhetoric of the Act & the reality of many people who use care & support.
II.1.5) Estimated total value
Value excluding VAT:
180 000.00
GBP
II.1.6) Information about lots
This contract is divided into lots:
No
II.2) Description
II.2.2) Additional CPV code(s)
73110000
73000000
73220000
73200000
79315000
80000000
80400000
II.2.3) Place of performance
NUTS code:
UKL
Main site or place of performance:
TBC
II.2.4) Description of the procurement
Approach
We set out a suggested approach below but invite potential suppliers to improve or build on these suggestions. We will agree the detailed approach during the inception stage of the project.
- A discovery phase, to include:
~ a review of the user research and work we’ve already done
~ an understanding of the programmes and initiatives already in place in Wales (see Appendix 7)
~ a review of developments in research, innovation and improvement skills and capacity-building in social care across the UK (see Appendix 7)
~ a review of relevant policies and documents, to help potential suppliers understand the political and policy environment, including A Healthier Wales, the evaluation of the Social Service and Wellbeing (Wales) Act, the Performance and Improvement Framework for Social Services and the draft Innovation Strategy for Wales.
- interviews, focus groups or workshops to gain a detailed understanding of user needs for research, innovation and improvement skills
~ a programme of creative, interactive co-design events that will also help build ongoing relationships between partners and people working and researching in social care
We need a supplier whose approach is:
- underpinned by user-centred design principles: committed to understanding the context of user need and the early and frequent involvement of users in the design process
- outcome and impact focused: seeking to understand intended outcomes for all partners involved in the project
- committed to improving equality, diversity and inclusivity in all areas of work: we want a supplier to support our strategic equality plan and help us towards Goal 6 of Welsh Government’s Anti-racist Wales action plan and support the principles of More than just words.
- supportive and open to existing ideas being dropped into the project, for example adapting Research Time Awards or aligning with our new social work post-qualification framework
- agile and iterative: we want to build on our experience of using agile methods to frequently iterate, reprioritise our work and pilot approaches early and often
- agile and collaborative: using a one-team approach and working in the open to maintain energy and communicate regularly with partners about the work.
We recognise a range of knowledge, skills and experience is needed to deliver this project and so we welcome consortia or collaborative bids.
Please see Specification for further information
II.2.5) Award criteria
Criteria below:
Quality criterion: Quality of written proposal and interview
/ Weighting: 75
Price
/ Weighting:
25
II.2.6) Estimated value
Value excluding VAT:
180 000.00
GBP
II.2.7) Duration of the contract, framework agreement or dynamic purchasing system
Start:
01/12/2022
End:
31/03/2023
This contract is subject to renewal: Yes
Description of renewals:
The initial contract will run until 31 March 2023 with the option to extend for an additional two years to a maximum expiry date of 31 March 2025. A break clause will be inserted at the end of each year (31 March 2023 and 31 March 2024) which Social Care Wales reserves the right to not enact.
II.2.9) Information about the limits on the number of candidates to be invited
II.2.10) Information about variants
Variants will be accepted:
No
II.2.11) Information about options
Options:
No
II.2.12) Information about electronic catalogues
Tenders must be presented in the form of electronic catalogues or include an electronic catalogue
II.2.13) Information about European Union funds
The procurement is related to a project and/or programme financed by European Union funds:
No
II.2.14) Additional information
There is a budget of 130,000 GBP for year one of the contract - Phase 1 and 2 of this project should be delivered in Year 1. There is a budget of 25,000 GBP for year two of the contract and 25,000 GBP for year three of the contract, pending approval of contract extension(s). All costs are inclusive of VAT.
Section III: Legal, economic, financial and technical information
III.1) Conditions for participation
III.1.2) Economic and financial standing
Selection criteria as stated in the procurement documents
III.1.3) Technical and professional ability
Selection criteria as stated in the procurement documents
III.2) Conditions related to the contract
Section IV: Procedure
IV.1) Description
IV.1.1) Type of procedure
Open procedure
IV.1.8) Information about Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)
The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement:
Yes
IV.2) Administrative information
IV.2.2) Time limit for receipt of tenders or requests to participate
Date:
25/10/2022
Local time: 12:00
IV.2.4) Languages in which tenders or requests to participate may be submitted
EN
CY
IV.2.6) Minimum time frame during which the tenderer must maintain the tender
Duration in months: 1 (from the date stated for receipt of tender)
IV.2.7) Conditions for opening of tenders
Date:
25/10/2022
Local time: 12:00
Place:
Remote/electronic opening of Sell2Wales postbox.
Information about authorised persons and opening procedure:
The Sell2Wales postbox will be opened by Social Care Wales's Senior Procurement Officer.
Section VI: Complementary information
VI.1) Information about recurrence
This is a recurrent procurement:
No
VI.2) Information about electronic workflows
Electronic invoicing will be accepted
Electronic payment will be used
VI.3) Additional information
Responses may be submitted in either Welsh or English
Gellir cyflwyno ymatebion yn y Gymraeg neu yn Saesneg
NOTE: To register your interest in this notice and obtain any additional information please visit the Sell2Wales Web Site at http://www.sell2wales.gov.wales/Search/Search_Switch.aspx?ID=125029.
The buyer has indicated that it will accept electronic responses to this notice via the Postbox facility. A user guide is available at http://www.sell2wales.gov.wales/sitehelp/help_guides.aspx.
Suppliers are advised to allow adequate time for uploading documents and to dispatch the electronic response well in advance of the closing time to avoid any last minute problems.
(WA Ref:125029)
The buyer considers that this contract is suitable for consortia.
VI.4) Procedures for review
VI.4.1) Review body
High Court
Royal Courts of Justice, The Strand
London
WC2A 2LL
UK
Telephone: +44 2079477501
VI.5) Date of dispatch of this notice
26/09/2022