Learning Disabilities and Autism Emergency Response Team for Children and young people
Estimated Value
Not specified
Deadline
Not specified
Published
29 May 2026
Type
services
Overview
The Learning Disabilities and Autism (LDA) Emergency Response Team (ERT) provides support to children and young people (CYP) with a diagnosed learning disability and/or autism across four Black Country localities: Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall and Wolverhampton. The service offers additional specialist capacity to deliver intensive, short-term support across the Black Country during periods of crisis or increased risk.
The LDA ERT undertakes a range of activities aimed at stabilising situations, reducing the risk of deterioration in mental health, and preventing escalation of behaviours that challenge. Through timely intervention, the service seeks to reduce the likelihood of outcomes such as long-term restrictions of liberty, placement breakdown, or hospital admission.
This notice is an intention to award a contract under the most suitable provider process. Approx lifetime value of the contract is £100,000 for 1 year.
Additional details
This is an existing service, with a new provider. The Learning Disabilities and Autism (LDA) Emergency Response Team (ERT) provides support to children and young people (CYP) with a diagnosed learning disability and/or autism across the four Black Country localities: Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall and Wolverhampton.
The service offers additional specialist capacity to deliver intensive, short-term support across the Black Country during periods of crisis or increased risk. The LDA ERT undertakes a range of activities aimed at stabilising situations, reducing the risk of deterioration in mental health, and preventing escalation of behaviours that challenge.
Through timely intervention, the service seeks to reduce the likelihood of outcomes such as long-term restrictions of liberty, placement breakdown, or hospital admission. Support provided by the LDA ERT may include, but is not limited to: • Emotional support and reassurance • Befriending and engagement with the child or young person • Observation and monitoring to support risk management • Implementation of rehabilitation techniques or therapeutic interventions designed by relevant professionals The service works collaboratively with local services and professionals to ensure that interventions are coordinated, responsive, and focused on maintaining the stability and wellbeing of the child or young person
AI Analysis
Powered by AI — always verify against official documents
This is a contract to run an emergency response team that helps children and young people with learning disabilities and autism across four towns in the Black Country (Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall, Wolverhampton) when they're in crisis or at risk. The service provides short-term intensive support to prevent hospital admissions, placement breakdowns, and serious harm. It's worth £100,000 per year and is being awarded to a new provider to replace the current one.
Requirements
- Must be able to deliver services across all four Black Country localities: Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall, and Wolverhampton
- Must have expertise in supporting children and young people with diagnosed learning disabilities and/or autism
- Must be able to provide intensive, short-term crisis intervention support
- Must be able to implement therapeutic interventions and rehabilitation techniques
- Must be able to work collaboratively with local health, social care, and education services
- Must have capacity to provide emotional support, befriending, engagement, observation, and monitoring
- Must be able to respond during periods of crisis or increased risk
- No specific certifications or formal qualifications listed in the notice — check the full tender documents for staffing requirements (likely to include mental health qualifications, safeguarding training, and experience working with children)
Key Tasks & Deliverables
- Deliver emotional support and reassurance to children and young people in crisis
- Provide befriending and engagement activities tailored to individual needs
- Observe and monitor young people to manage risk and prevent deterioration
- Implement therapeutic interventions and rehabilitation techniques prescribed by healthcare professionals
- Stabilise crisis situations to prevent hospital admission
- Prevent placement breakdown (where the young person lives)
- Reduce behaviours that challenge through timely intervention
- Coordinate responses with local NHS services, local councils, schools, and other professionals
- Work across four separate localities (Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall, Wolverhampton)
How to Read This Tender
- 1This is a 'most suitable provider' process, not an open competitive tender — this means the council has likely already identified preferred providers or has specific selection criteria beyond just price. Ask the council or check the full tender documents for who's eligible and what the selection process actually is.
- 2The contract is worth £100,000 per year for what sounds like a specialist service — this is relatively modest funding, so you'll need to budget carefully for staff salaries, training, and cover across four towns. Check whether this is a single-site or multi-site requirement and what travel costs might be involved.
- 3This is a 'replacement' service — an existing team is already running this, so understand what they currently deliver, how many young people they support, and what hours they operate. The full tender documents should include service specifications and activity data.
- 4Watch for 'collaborative working' language — this service doesn't exist in isolation. You'll need established relationships (or plans to build them quickly) with local councils' children's services, NHS mental health teams, schools, and crisis teams. Check who the main commissioners and partner agencies are.
- 5Crisis services need 24/7 or extended hours capacity in most cases — clarify in the tender questions what hours are expected (evenings, nights, weekends) and whether you need on-call staff. Budget and staffing plans depend heavily on this.
Tips for Small Businesses
- Consider a consortium or subcontracting approach: you may not need to deliver everything yourself. Partner with a larger mental health or children's charity that has the infrastructure, and provide specialist autism/learning disability expertise. This reduces your risk and lets you focus on your core strength.
- Social value scoring is likely important in a 'most suitable provider' process — emphasize local employment, training opportunities for young people with disabilities, and how you'll improve outcomes beyond just the service (e.g., peer mentoring, community links). Check the tender criteria.
- At £100,000 per year, margins will be tight — challenge the scope in your tender questions. Clarify: How many young people? What's the expected response time? Are staff based at fixed locations or mobile? What training and supervision is already in place? A vague specification can quickly become unaffordable.
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Key Dates
Published
29 May 2026
Submission deadline
Not specified
Notice type
award
Source
find a tender
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