WCC - Equalities Service within Warwickshire

Warwickshire County Council (the Council) is seeking to commission a single or multiple provider(s) to deliver a range of free, confidential, independent advice and support services covering each of the protected characteristics as set out in the Equality Act 2010.

The service will deliver fully accessible advice and support around victimisation, discrimination, harassment and hate cases, and refer to specialist support organisations where appropriate.

The service will develop and deliver a range of equalities related training to community groups, faith groups, businesses, schools and public sector organisations.

The service will seek to improve community cohesion across Warwickshire via a range of engagement channels with community organisations and public sector organisations, ensuring different groups sitting under each of the protected characteristics feel their voices are heard and they have influence in local decision making.

In line with WCC's commitment to embedding the levelling-up approach locally, the service will offer a flexible model that enables a more targeted delivery approach in response to agreed priorities.

The service will be divided into the following three lots: o Lot 1 Discrimination and Hate Crime Support o Lot 2 Provision of Equalities Training and Guidance o Lot 3 Engagement and Community Cohesion

Where more than one supplier is successful in securing contracts for the delivery of the above lots, suppliers will work in partnership to deliver the service outcomes.

The providers must work collaboratively together and will need to work with commissioners, referrers, and service users to deliver the outcomes.

The following will be eligible to use the service:

o People who live or work in Warwickshire. o VCSE sector and public sector organisations in Warwickshire. o Businesses in Warwickshire

The service must be available to eligible clients in each of the five boroughs and districts of Warwickshire (North Warwickshire, Nuneaton and Bedworth, Rugby, Warwick, and Stratford-on-Avon), with access opportunities for rural- and urban-based clients. The distribution of the service will be responsive to priority areas and the level of need.

Additional information: Warwickshire County Council will be using its e-tendering system (CSW-JETS) for the administration of this procurement process. Providers must register with the system to be able to express an interest and download documents. The web address for CSW-JETS is: www.csw-jets.co.uk Registration and use of CSW-JETS is free. All correspondence or clarifications relating to this procurement must be via the CSWJETS correspondence function. If you are having trouble registering with CSWJETS please email us at: procurement@warwickshire.gov.uk Providers must register on CSW-JETS and express an interest in this project in order to download tender documents and be able to correspond with us about this procurement.

Is a Recurrent Procurement Type? : Yes