Purpose

To seek approval for the commissioning of Short Breaks for children and young people with SEND (Special Educational Needs and disabilities), which includes proposals to extend the term of some of the current contracts and also invite tenders for vacant lot 3 to provide the funding from Lot 6 and 8 to Barnwood Trust to run a grants programme.

Decision

In coming to this decision I have given due and full regard to the requirements of the public sector equality duty contained in section 149 of the Equality Act 2010 (“the Act”) by reference to the law itself and also the relevant Equality Impact Assessment, which was prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Act.

Having fully considered all the available information, I have decided to reject the alternative options and take the recommended decision to: 

1. Exercise the Council’s option to extend the term of the following contracts by a period of 1 year and 9 months (1st July 2025 – 31st March 2027) to align their expiry dates with the commencement date of the contracts that will replace them following the recommissioning of Short Breaks in 2027: 

1. To Active Impact for the provision of countywide inclusion support short breaks services (Lot 1).  

1. To Active Gloucestershire for the provision of countywide physical activity inclusion short break services (Lot 2). 

1. To Forest Pulse for the provision of community based short breaks in the Forest of Dean (Lot 5) 2

1. To enter into a deed of variation for the contracts under lots 4, 5 and 7 in order to align service delivery.  
2. Conduct a competitive procurement process in respect of a contract Complex/ Specialist (Lot3) for the supply of Short Break services for children with complex needs (who can display behaviours that challenge) for a period of two years 1st April 2025 – 31st March 2027.  
3. Award the contract described in Recommendation 3 to the preferred tenderer. 
4. Allocate the funding for community based short break services in Gloucester (Lot 6) and Tewkesbury and North Cotswolds (Lot 8) to Barnwood Trust, under which Barnwood Trust shall award grants in the Tewkesbury and North Cotswolds and Gloucester Localities during the period 1st April 2025 until 31st March 2027 
   
   

For the reasons set out in the report.