Find a TenderPast planning noticePreliminary market engagement notice
Published 14 May 2025, 11:12 BST

Official UK procurement notice

Employee Assistance Programme 2025

Official notice

Authority: National Highways Limited (Central government)

ServicesAbove thresholdSME suitableVCSE suitable
Sectors: Health & Social Care (85) Delivery: UK
Planned pipeline value£450,000pipeline notice, not a live tender
Tender notice expected 1 Oct 2025from the planned procurement notice
Contract term 3 yrsends 31 Mar 2029 · up to 31 Mar 2031 with extensions · starts 1 Apr 2026

What is being bought

Published requirement description

National Highways are at the early stages of understanding market capability in respect of Employee Assistance Programme providers. This is in advance of the current contractual agreement for these services expiring in 2026. The types of services envisaged under this contract include (but are not limited to),

  • Psychological Treatment including counselling, other talking therapies provided via telephone, web chat and face to face, online self-directed and supported counselling and EMDR
  • Psychological assessments
  • Trauma and Critical Incident Support
  • Support and guidance for Mental Health First Aiders including ongoing support, development and guidance
  • National coverage 24/7, 365 days a year – EAP helpline and APP availability
  • Education and Awareness Programmes
  • Publicity and Promotion
  • Functionality of organisational engagement for team challenges with the ability to access data
  • Chat functions (on app) with non-AI solutions
  • Common occurrence and conditions toolkits for managers and individuals for self-management and signposting
  • Bespoke specialist support materials
  • On-site training as required
  • Financial Wellbeing
  • Legal services support
  • Addiction support
  • People manager and senior leader specialist communications
  • Robust complaints / feedback process

National Highways now wish to understand the current market offering for these types of services, including capacity and mobilisation timescales.

Please note the values are estimates only at this stage and it is likely that the actual values will be somewhere between £450,000 and £540,000 (including VAT) for the whole life of the contract, including any extensions.

Alongside this Notice, National Highways have published a survey for interested suppliers to take part in. Details of which can be found below.

Once the closing date for responses have passed, we will analyse the results and this will inform a procurement, the details of which are still to be determined. Any learning gained from this early engagement will be shared with interested parties.

Routes to market under existing Frameworks that are available to National Highways are being appraised separately.

CPV: Company health services

The lotProcurement structure

single lot · no lot value published
Lot #1PlannedRenewal 3 yrsSMEVCSE
Contract period: 1 Apr 2026 – 31 Mar 2029 (3 yrs) · up to 31 Mar 2031 with extensions
Delivery: UKEligibility: SME eligibleVCSE eligible
Extensions: Extension options published

Procedure terms & legal framework

From the official record
Legal basis
UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
Procurement category
Services
Notice status
Past planning notice
Procurement threshold
Above threshold (FTS publication)
Regulatory regime
Standard
Commercial structure
Stand-alone contract (no framework)
Competition type
Competitive procedure
GPA / WTO covered
Unspecified in notice
Recurring procurement
Unspecified in notice
First published
14 May 2025, 11:12 BST
Last source update
14 May 2025, 11:12 BST
FTS notice number
2025/S 000-021154
Latest notice
Preliminary market engagement notice (UK2)
Classification (CPV)
Company health services
Delivery area
UK
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-0512d0 Find a Tender

How it was run

Official notice
Submission deadline
—

Timeline

14 May 2025 → 1 Apr 2026 · 4 dates
  1. Planning notice published
    14 May 2025, 11:12 BST
  2. Market engagement
    27 Jun 2025, 23:59 BST

    National Highways would like interested suppliers to take part in a survey

    forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx ↗

    Responses to the survey will be accepted until the Engagement Deadline of Friday 27th June 2025 at mid-day.

  3. Tender notice expected391 days ago
    1 Oct 2025, 23:59 BST
  4. Contract starts210 days ago
    1 Apr 2026, 00:00 BST

Notice history

1 event · 1 release on Find a Tender
  1. Preliminary market engagement notice published
    14 May 2025, 11:12 BST
    UK2

Commercial outcome & contract awards

Pipeline notice
Awards (0)
No award published
Contracts (0)
No contract published
Bid statistics
No aggregate bid statistics published

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

National Highways

Contracting authorityPublic authority - central government GB-COH: 09346363 Bridge House, 1 Walnut Tree Close, Guildford, South East, GU1 4LZContact email

Official documents & specifications (1)

Official links; attachments are not copied

Notices published for this procedure