Homeless Prevention & Rough Sleeping Support Services HDG/2025/941

This is a Prior Information Notice (PIN) for information only. It is not a formal invitation to tender. You will need to respond to the contract notice in order to be considered for these contract/s. The purpose of this PIN is to maximise transparency and competition for the upcoming contract notice.

Stoke-on-Trent City Council currently commissions a range of homelessness and housing related support services, including services to support individuals currently experiencing rough sleeping. All of these service agreements are due to expire in March 2026.

Stoke-on-Trent City Council is looking to procure housing related support services, to provide holistic homelessness prevention and support for households who are either at risk of becoming homeless or who are currently experiencing rough sleeping. This follows a full review of homelessness and rough sleeping carried out during 2024/2025, the findings of which fed into the production of a new Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy for 2025-2030.

The Strategy supports the themes of the Council's Corporate Strategy 2024-2025, in helping to deliver a Healthier, Safer and Fairer city which includes; a focus on the prevention of homelessness and supporting people who are experiencing rough sleeping into accommodation that meets their needs, helping people to live independently at home supporting families at risk of or experiencing homelessness.

The 3 priorities of the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy, will provide a focus for the procurement of the Homelessness Prevention and Rough Sleeping Support services to be procured and will require a collaborative and an enhanced multi-agency approach from prospective tenderers;

1. Prevention: To raise the priority of homelessness prevention within the city. To embed robust pathways through early intervention to identify and prevent crisis situations
2. Innovative Intervention: To intervene to relieve homelessness and tackle rough sleeping quickly, by exploring new and innovative ways to make best use of the accommodation options we have available in the city and to ensure households have prompt access to appropriate accommodation.
3. Focus on Support: To ensure those most vulnerable to homelessness, including single people, Young People (including care leavers), Armed Forces Veterans and families with children, have the right level of support tailored to their needs within appropriate and secure accommodation.

Description of the procurement;

Stoke-on-Trent City Council will be looking for a suitable provider or a consortium of providers to deliver against three specific lots which will include the following categories:

LOT 1: Homelessness Prevention & Rough Sleeping Pathway

LOT 2: Young People & Teenage Parents - Housing Related Support

LOT 3: Homeless Families - Housing Related Support

Lot 1 - will required a collaborative approach to be developed to ensure a clear pathway can be delivered to support individuals that are homeless and/or experiencing rough sleeping to move away from the streets to access safe more long-term accommodation with an aspiration to enable the sustainment of independent living and recovery. The Service will support Adults, aged 18+ and will include; singles, couples, and Armed Forces Veterans.

The approach will include;

• Intensive Outreach Support to provide an assertive outreach service that will engage with those who are sleeping rough to support them into services away from the street, which is the crucial first stage in getting people into a supportive pathway. The delivery of a single point of access (Homeless Hub/s) for those individuals experiencing rough sleeping and homelessness.

The outreach service will work intensively with individuals who are experiencing rough sleeping to support them off the streets into secure accommodation and ensure they have the necessary support to enable them to retain that accommodation and continue on a recovery pathway through a holistic approach. This service will adopt features such as outreach shifts that correspond with patterns of rough sleeping in Stoke-on-Trent, for example, regular early morning sessions and evening sessions if this appropriate.

The service will also provide assertive outreach to cover the boundaries of Newcastle-under-Lyme and support for street sex workers operating in the city.

• Emergency Accommodation that will provide direct access support to rapidly move individuals away from the street and provide a short period of stabilisation and assessment of support needs to enable more long-term accommodation options to be secured. There will be a requirement for single sex accommodation settings, to ensure that very vulnerable individuals can be supported safely, such as victims of domestic abuse and very vulnerable individuals who may have experienced historical trauma. Provision for emergency winter provision will also be a requirement for the service.
• For those adults with multiple-disadvantage the service will provide accommodation-based support, which will be provided on a 24/7 basis through personalised supported approaches focussed on client need. The service will be delivered through a robust multi-disciplinary approach with formal arrangements with specialist teams to provide wraparound, targeted support, including; mental health & drug and alcohol services, and other statutory and non-statutory agencies, such as probation, the police, social care services, voluntary/faith services, peer mentors or individuals with lived experience.
• The service will provide floating support for individuals moving on from supported housing or directly from the street into accommodation, to provide resettlement support and tenancy sustainment support to reduce and prevent repeated homelessness including preventing a return to rough sleeping. Support will be flexible in nature to ensure that support can step up and step down and floating support will be available across any tenure type.
• Services will look to develop and deliver Meaningful Activities which will include volunteering, peer mentoring or other asset-based development/social activity to promote resilience and wellbeing, through collaborative and innovative approaches to enhance the life and recovery opportunities for all individuals accessing support services. This will include links to external opportunities including voluntary, charity and faith services.

Lots 2 & 3 - will look to develop housing related support, specifically to meet the needs of Young People, including teenage parents and Homeless Families. The focus will be to relieve homelessness and to promote recovery and independence in accommodation-based settings and through follow on floating support to promote independent living and tenancy sustainment and the prevention of repeat homelessness.

The service will require effective joint working between Housing Services, NHS Services, the Stoke-on-Trent Family Matters Programme and Children and Family Services.

The intention is to procure contracts for three (3) years, with the option to extend for up to two (2) further 12-month periods. These extensions will be subject to available funding and the satisfactory performance of the provider.

To register your interest in delivering the service/s please email

victoria.millns@stoke.gov.uk by 12 noon on 19th September 2025, if you wish to attend the Market Engagement Event to take place on 24th September 2025 at the Bentilee Neighbourhood Centre, Stoke where further information will be shared regarding the tender, which will also include time for networking opportunities.