Digital Mental Health and Emotional Wellbeing Service for Children and Young People

NHS Somerset Integrated Care Board (ICB) is seeking a Prime Provider to deliver a Digital Mental Health and Emotional Wellbeing Service for Children and Young People across Somerset.

The service will provide digitally enabled emotional wellbeing and mental health support, with a focus on improving timely access, supporting early intervention and prevention, reducing inequalities and helping children and young people access appropriate support when they need it.

The successful provider will be expected to operate as part of Somerset’s wider emotional wellbeing and mental health system, complementing existing statutory, education, community and voluntary sector provision rather than duplicating current services.

The service must provide a safe, accessible and inclusive environment where children and young people can access emotional wellbeing and mental health support, information, advice and guidance appropriate to their individual needs.

Service Requirements

The provider will be expected to:

• Promote emotional wellbeing, resilience and self-management.
• Deliver timely support for children and young people experiencing emerging, low-level and moderate emotional wellbeing and mental health needs.
• Support early intervention and prevention to help reduce escalation of need where appropriate.
• Provide access to appropriately trained practitioners through safe, confidential and responsive support.
• Help children and young people develop resilience and self-management skills and access ongoing sources of support where appropriate.
• Support children and young people who may be awaiting assessment, intervention or assistance from other services.
• Provide appropriate signposting, navigation and referral routes into wider support.
• Maintain robust safeguarding, risk management and escalation processes.
• Reduce barriers to accessing services and improve outcomes for underserved populations, including through reasonable adjustments, accessible service design and compliance with the Accessible Information Standard.
• Work collaboratively with education settings, primary care, Mental Health Support Teams, CAMHS, VCFSE organisations and other relevant partners.
• Engage with neighbourhood, community and voluntary sector organisations to increase awareness and accessibility of the service.
• Collect and use service-user feedback to support ongoing service improvement.

The incumbent provider has stated that TUPE is not likely to apply.

Contract Information

Buyer: NHS Somerset Integrated Care Board

Deadline: 9 September 2026 at 12:00pm

Contract Value: £1,050,000 excluding VAT maximum potential value

Delivery Length: 5 years, with an optional extension of any period up to a further 2 years

Service Commencement: 1 April 2027

Reference: WA19078 / C458755

Tender Link: Health Family Atamis e-procurement system

The initial five-year contract has a maximum financial envelope of £750,000 excluding VAT. The Commissioner may extend the arrangement for any period up to a further two years at £150,000 per annum, giving a maximum potential value of £1,050,000 excluding VAT if the full seven-year term is used.

Any extension will be awarded at the Commissioner’s discretion. The authority also states that renewal or extension will be subject to performance, funding availability and organisational requirements.

Procurement Process

The opportunity is being conducted through an open procedure and is a Provider Selection Regime (PSR) Contract Notice.

The award is subject to the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023. The notice states that the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 and Procurement Act 2023 do not apply to this award.

Providers can access the opportunity through the Health Family Atamis e-procurement system. Organisations must register their interest in the opportunity to gain full access to the procurement documentation and questionnaires. Suppliers not already registered on the system will need to register before they can access the full documentation and submit a bid.

Commissioner Changes

NHS Somerset Integrated Care Board, NHS Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire Integrated Care Board and NHS Dorset Integrated Care Board are working under a formal clustering arrangement ahead of a planned merger into a new organisation from 1 April 2027.

The procurement is being managed by NHS South, Central & West on behalf of the commissioners. As SCW is undergoing restructuring, management of the procurement may transfer to a successor organisation during the process, with bidders to be informed of any resulting changes.

The opportunity represents a significant commissioning requirement for providers capable of delivering accessible digital mental health and emotional wellbeing support to children and young people, with a strong emphasis on early intervention, inclusion, safeguarding and integration with Somerset’s wider support system.

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