Social work and related services

Tender description

Portsmouth City Council, 'the Authority', has awarded a contract for the delivery of a Targeted short breaks service. The Authority currently has 4 contracts for Targeted short breaks expiring on 15.4.2018. The services are: — Activities for children and young people with autism and asperger's. — Inclusive play scheme. — Portsmouth teenage project. — Youth holiday play scheme. The contracts have been retendered as part of a budget saving exercise and the new contract will bring these 4 service areas together under one lead provider. The service will commence on 16.4.2018 for an initial contract period of 3 years with the option to extend the term by a further 2 years to a maximum total term of 5 years in increments to be agreed. Targeted Short Breaks are offered to parents and carers and young people living in the city of Portsmouth who meet eligibility criteria. Children and young people are eligible for support if the young person has a level of physical or mental difficulty or disability, which has a substantial and long-term effect on their ability to carry out day-to-day activities. This may include a physical or learning disability, a hearing or visual impairment. It includes children and young people with Autism and Asperger’s Condition and young people who may have challenging behaviour as a result of their learning disability. This service is for the targeted level 1 provision only and is split into 4 service areas to ensure there is a range of short breaks that can meet the needs of the services users as identified during consultation with parents, carers, young people and other stakeholders. 1. Teenage group/club — age group 14 to 18 years The group will be for young people, with physical and/or mild-moderate learning difficulties or special educational needs living in Portsmouth. The focus for the group will be on improving life skills for all young people including building confidence and independence and developing communication skills. The group will be delivered in a “self-directed” manner enabling young people to make choices regarding the types of activities on offer as well as how the group will develop over time.The group will run on a weekly basis at a minimum of 40 weeks (term time) per year. The numbers attending have historically been between 15-20 a week. 2. Autism Clubs/Groups — age group 5 — 18 years The aim of these Clubs/Groups are to provide fun and enjoyable activities for children and young people to socialise with peers and to help them form friendships, whilst being provided with an appropriate level of support and supervision, along with offering a range of age appropriate activities in line with their developmental needs and personal preferences. The current offer is Gym Club, Youth Hub and Teenage Group, groups tend to have between 15-20 attendees. 3. Youth Holiday Scheme — age group 14 to 18 years This aim of the group will be on improving life skills for all young people including building confidence and independence and developing communication skills, during the school/college holidays. The numbers attending have historically been between 15 - 23 over the holiday period. 4. Inclusive Holiday Playscheme — age group 4 to 12 years The Inclusive Holiday Playscheme is for children that require additional support because of their diagnosed moderate levels of physical disability, learning difficulty, Autism/asperger syndrome and /or disability related challenging behaviour. This service area works in partnership with mainstream holiday playscheme providers seeking to make available additional capacity within the sector to allow settings to offer their services to families where a child has a disability/and/or special educational need. The required outcomes of all four service areas are: — Improved opportunities for parents and carers to get a break. — Improved opportunities for disabled children and young people to access a break. — Positive experiences for children and young people by promoting and improving friendships with their peers and by encouraging independence, social activities and new experiences. — Reduction in social isolation for young people. Parents and carers will be expected to pay a contribution towards the cost of attending the Teenage group, Autism activities and Youth holiday scheme. The cost will remain static for 2 years from commencement of the contract and any increases after this period must be discussed with the Authority.