Social services

Tender description

Shropshire Council is seeking a service provider for the provision of a Shared LIves Service. Shropshire Council holds a current contract for a Shared Lives service which expires on 15.6.2019 and is therefore tendering this and wishes to appoint a provider to operate the service from 16.6.2019. Shared Lives care offers people an alternative and highly flexible form of accommodation and/or care or support inside or outside the Shared Lives carer’s home. Shared Lives arrangements are set up and supported by Shared Lives schemes and the care and accommodation people receive is provided by individuals, couples or families in the local community. This enables people taking up a Shared Lives opportunity and the Shared Lives carer/s to enjoy shared activities and life experiences. The Council currently funds 42 permanent placements and 49 respite placements in the administrative area of Shropshire plus 5 placements which are outside of the administrative area of Shropshire as follows: — 2 in Leighton, — Welshpool, — 2 in Leintwardine, — 1 in Prestatyn. The current provider has 31 Shared Lives carers supporting Shropshire permanent placements, 13 of whom offer respite and a further 25 carers who offer respite placements. These figures may have changed by the commencement of the new contract. The Council is seeking an experienced, quality provider which is able to deliver this service and also develop it to include short term hospital discharge and home sharing – tenderers are advised to read Schedule 1 of the form of contract for further information on these additional areas of the service. Contract and price: The contract will be for an initial 5 year period with potential to extend for a further 5 years. The maximum funding available for this service is 127 000 GBP per annum and bids over this price will not be accepted. Tenderers should note the additional payments schedule in the form of contract which details how additional payments can be received for developing the service. The price will not be subject to a payment review to take into account the Council’s allocated inflationary uplift until April 2022. Staffing – TUPE Applicants should note that it is considered that the employee “Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006” (“TUPE”) will apply to this contract. Applicants should note that the staffing information spreadsheet being provided with this tender, upon request, only lists those staff currently employed. In the event that further staff are employed by the current provider to cover the service prior to the start of the new contract then these further staff may also be eligible for transfer under TUPE.